Guardian Angel
by Laradhel
Summary: [ON HIATUS] Welp. I don't have a clue of how I got stuck in here. But I guess I'll make the most of it. I mean, who would've thought that I'd be able to aspire to be a Pro Hero with these Quirks? (OC-SI, sorta AU). Rated T because of swearing and some dark themes.
1. Chapter 1

**CHAPTER 1**

 **A/N: First attempt at a SI, and second attempt at writing a My Hero Academia fanfic. The first one I wrote had to be deleted because of lack of inspiration, being not completely original (I later found out that BOTH of my OC's Quirks had already been introduced, so bummer for me), and also not liking my main OC's personality really much. Hopefully, this one here WILL BE original (crossing my fingers here, and PLEASE DON'T CRUSH MY DREAMS!) I'm writing this because I enjoy writing.**

 **So, couple things: there will be NO ROMANCE here, like in my previous one (mostly because I suck at writing them down) and I will certainly try to upload this as frequently as humanly possible. I already have this fic's second chapter almost done, it only needs a couple tweaks here and there before it's ready to go though. The first one feels a bit rushed up (especially the ending) but I promise I'll make better next time.**

 **Will this be AU? Sorta? I don't really know for sure. I'm not really good at changing things out of the blue and creating a whole new scene. But yeah, I guess this is kind of AU. Ish. There will be changes, that's for sure. It's the consequences I'm more concerned about.**

 **Well. You'll see later on, I guess.**

 **Disclaimer: My Hero Academia belongs to the fabulous author Kohei Horikoshi. I only own a couple OCs.**

* * *

 _I tried to breathe. It came out with a wet gurgle, the thick taste of iron filling my mouth and coming out in streams from the corners. My sight couldn't focus on anything, swimming in and out of darkness; my hearing wasn't any better. I was almost convinced that one of my eyes couldn't open due to the blood though._

 _Everything hurt. My arms, twisted horribly and bones snapped out of my skin. My torso, caved in and impaled with a stray, thick branch. My head, heavily concussed. The only thing I couldn't feel, was my body from my waist down._

 _That panicked me more than the excruciating pain the rest of my body was going through. I tried moving my left leg, then my right. None responded._

 _The car shook. A cacophony of voices reached my broken hearing._

 _Someone was there. Someone was trying to help me…!_

 _I tried screaming, pleading for help. But all that came out was a pathetic whimper, more blood drowning the sound. Still, that only seemed to egg my saviors on, because the car shook again._

 _"... can't! The… in my…!"_

 _"... calling them… too late! He's… forever!"_

 _"Pe… us! … please!"_

 _"PETER!"_

* * *

Huh?

Where… was I?

All sounds came muffled into my ear. Darkness, though slightly oppressive, felt incredibly warm and safe. I tried to kick the walls around me, trying to get myself more comfortable. It felt… strangely squishy.

Ugh… I wanted to sleep.

Somewhere deep me, I knew it wasn't my time yet.

The muffled sounds lulled me back to sleep.

* * *

TOO NOISY!

What the _hell_!? I was so peacefully sleeping, when suddenly my ears popped and every noise became too sharp for me. My lungs felt funny, my back also felt funny, and my protective walls had all of a sudden vanished into non-existence.

Then the most peaceful sensation filled me when someone encircled me and held me close. A voice, female and beautiful-sounding, cooed and hummed what sounded like a lullaby.

I… I wanted to see… The person with that beautiful voice…

I blearily opened my eyes, instantly closing them when the light grew too intense for my eyes. I blinked once, twice, the figures around me too blurry for me to get any details on. I could distinguish, however, the one holding me. Her beatific smile, deep blue eyes and hair the purest of white. Her arms, though frail-looking, held me protectively against her chest with the–

Wait… holding me? Since when had I the size of a–?

Oh. _Oh no_.

I… Did I just…?

The moment the situation got clear in my brain, I loudly bawled, my self-control over my emotions right about non-existent at the moment. That… was… traumatic! How the hell did I become a freaking newborn baby!?

I felt my body being held even closer, a shushing sound coming from the obviously bewildered woman holding me in her arms. Too caught up in my shock and –let's be honest here– fear that overwhelmed me right now, I just ignored her, trying to calm my anguish by bawling my eyes out.

This was freaking wrong! I'm a freaking twenty-year-old man, for fuck's sake! I-am-not-a-fucking-baby! This was not my place, this was not my body! Whoever had the brilliant idea to do this stupid joke, just take me back where I fucking belonged!

A slender finger, soft and with a perfect nail, suddenly touched my tear-soaked puffy cheek. This startled me so much that I instantly stopped crying, wide eyes blinking at the woman holding me in her arms.

She was laughing. Her smile looked so bright and happy –despite her evident exhaustion– that it seemed to illuminate the whole space. She said something down at me, in a language I faintly recognized as Japanese (which I didn't have a whole grasp on)– it served for me to instantly calm down and weakly grip her finger between my small chubby ones. She chuckled at that, and lifted me to give me a kiss on the forehead.

I… I liked that.

* * *

My back felt _wrong._

Even with the mind of a six-month baby, my subconscious as a twenty-year-old man knew something was wrong with my back. It felt… lumpy, and there was much more weight in it that it should be. Crawling, much less walking, was proving to be a pain because of the wrongness in my back. Also sleeping, since I had to sleep on my side or face-down in my crib. Which was also dangerous– if my memories were correct, one of the symptoms of sudden infant death syndrome was sleeping face-down on the crib.

The blue-eyed, white-haired woman I now knew was my mother in this new life, she didn't seem concerned about this. In fact, she looked delighted for some reason. Some old guys kept visiting us, locking me up with them in a single room once a month, just seizing me up for an hour before leaving with the same swiftness as a ghost. All I knew, my mother apparently didn't like them very much, judging her frown whenever she found them at our doorstep.

With my limited language (verbal at any rate, because mentally I would be considered a genius) I learned that my name was Hoseki Enzeru, and my mother was Hoseki Koe. Pretty Japanese-sounding names… So I was reborn into a Japanese environment, huh. I was still weirded out by the fact that I was an adult inside an infant's body, but at least I wasn't alone.

Or so I hoped, anyways.

I didn't see my father anywhere. Whenever I asked my mother about him, she'd get that complicated look on her face and change the subject.

 _(I learned as I gre up that he'd died not long ago before my birth.)_

* * *

When I finally reached a year, I got to see myself in a mirror. For some reason every mirror in the Japanese-style house had been covered by thick curtains, and the only one I was permitted to use was the one saved in the farthest room of the house we inhabited.

Mom guided me by the hand, not minding my occasional stumbling or the fact that I was far smaller than her and thus having to almost crouch beside me to keep my pace.

"Now here, En-kun." My mother smiled down at me, giving me my special nickname that I personally loved. "Don't be afraid, alright?"

I just looked up at her, mutely. For some reason, I felt like not wanting anyone to know that I actually understood my mom and the old guys perfectly. Well, maybe mom, but certainly not the old guys.

We finally stopped before a richly-decorated door. I never thought about this before, but the feel of this house almost seemed more like a mansion.

Mom knelt down before me and made sure I was presentable. She straightened my Japanese-styled silk robes and smoothed down the mop of white hair I inherited from her. She smiled down at me, a brilliant smile that drew one of a kind in mine.

I loved my mother, dearly.

Even if she wasn't my first mother.

"You've always been so quiet and well-mannered… You never give problems." Her blue eyes somehow showed a hint of sadness, and I quickly frowned– as much as I wanted to stay away from becoming a genius, I didn't want my mother to be sad.

"Don't be sad, mommy." I grabbed her hand resting on my cheek, inwardly flinching at my high-pitched voice. I was not looking forward when my voice cracked because of puberty.

Her eyes twinkled, another smile even shinier than before adorning her perfect face. Her free hand smoothed down my hair again, letting me hold the other.

"Thank you, En-kun. You're a really good boy, you know that?"

"Heheh, I know!" I cheekily grinned, earning a soft laugh from her.

As mom said, I made sure to be perfectly composed during my first year in this life. To be well-mannered, not be loud or annoying (only when my diapers were needed to be changed or when I was hungry) and overall, try to understand the environment I was in. I quickly got the reputation of a quiet boy with big, innocent eyes trying to catch everything around me. Learning.

And boy did I learn things!

My family, for starters. With the peculiarity of its members being all male (except for my mother of course), we were also filthy rich. As in, we owned a mansion carved in the face of a mountain level of rich, where we resided on currently. Apart from several other homes in the city, used only by those with business in there. We owned whole establishments, and even private parks. I had no idea who managed all the money, or even how we got it in the first place, but coming from a rather humble background in my former life–

– ** _"Hang on, Peter!"_** –

–this change of situation was certainly welcome for me. Of course, I wouldn't like to become one of those snotty little brats looking down on everyone because of their superior wealth.

It was weird though, that despite living in an apparently huge mansion, I never knew nothing beyond my bedroom and bathroom (no mirror of course).

The second thing I quickly learned (and that got my old geeky instincts almost squealing in pure delight) was a single word that escaped from my mom's lips when she was talking with one of the old men.

Quirk. With capital Q.

She said something about me inheriting my father's Quirk.

My mind was on a freaking loop after that. I understood then why I was in a Japanese-styled world, but couldn't understand how in all hells I managed to enter a world that didn't exist. For Christ's sake, My Hero Academia was an _anime_!

... Then again, for all my laziness, I was a smart kid, both in this world and in the previous one. In my nerdy theories, I knew about the multiverse and the like. If that was true, then it would be logical to deduce that every other world existed as well. That was the dream of every geek, to be able to enter their favorite anime/manga and be able to interact with the characters, and to even change the history inside!

But why did I get reincarnated into My Hero Academia of all worlds? I mean, I got to be in a world I knew a lot about, plot-wise most of all, so I got the long end of the stick at least. But changing the rules would unleash the butterfly effect no doubt– hell, even right now, with my unforeseen birth, I might be changing things forever…

Oh well. Better look at this on the bright side: I got to be in a cool world! I only wished my Quirk wasn't utterly useless and unable to get me to be a Pro Hero…

"En-kun?"

My mom's voice brought me back to the present, her blue eyes scanning my face with a crease of worry on her delicate forehead.

"We… don't have to do this if you don't want to sweetheart." She smiled softly at me as her concerned wrinkles disappeared. Her fingers ran from my forehead down my face, to my chin, holding it softly. "I can tell the elders to do this another day…"

Right. The elders. That was what they were called. A rather dignified title. And family too, maybe my grandfather and great uncles. I didn't know why they insisted on being called 'elders' though, if they were family. Or even why they kept themselves away from everyone.

Heck, I knew nothing about this family at all.

"No." I shook my head all the same. "I wanna do this, mommy."

And I _did_ want to know. What the hell was this about, for starters?

She smiled even wider. "That's my boy. Now listen," her face grew serious, "inside there, you'll see the elders around a mirror. I'll go inside with you, so don't worry. Okay sweetheart?"

"Yeah!" I nodded with a bright smile on my face.

She chuckled and then kissed my forehead. I relished on it, glad that I had such a wonderful mother here. I barely remembered mine from my previous life, as she died when I was born, but I figured she loved me as much as Hoseki Koe.

The atmosphere inside was rather solemn and a bit oppressive for my tastes. Some kind of heavy-scented incense filled the room, and it was empty except for the elders in the center of the room, all standing around what looked like a full-body, two-feet mirror. I could barely see anything else as there was only a single lamp hanging from the ceiling just above the elders, but I could feel the thick carpet under my feet. Spooked by the whole atmosphere, I clung tighter to Mom, who only answered with an equally vice-grip on my little hand.

"Hoseki Enzeru." One of the elders spoke with a surprisingly strong voice. "Step forward."

I admit, I jumped at that voice. Not only at how sudden it came, but also at how authoritative it sounded. Whoever this guy was, he obviously commanded the others.

"Y-yes!"

Mom knelt behind me and gave me a little push when we were near them. I stumbled with my chubby legs, thankful that I didn't make a fool of myself, like tripping on nothing. These guys looked like serious business.

Once I stood in front of the mirror, I finally got a look at myself.

The most prominent things that had changed about me, was my incredibly-pale skin and white hair, along with my pale grey eyes. All in all, I looked like a freaking ghost! I wasn't sure I liked my new looks. I knew I shouldn't pay much attention at how chubby I looked or the paleness of my skin (I'd make sure to tan my skin later on), but those eyes and hair… Somehow I doubted the elders would let me put on contact lenses and dye my hair a different color.

"Turn around."

The elder at the far left suddenly barked, making me jump again.

"Huh…?" I just let a confused noise as I blinked up at him. Man, the five of them looked exactly the same! Talk about weird.

His face darkened. _Uh-oh_.

"I said turn. _Around_."

I quickly did so, almost stepping on my own toes. One thing about old men with high positions: never piss them off. They're scary enough as they are with their matching faces.

"Hm… They're growing nicely." One of the elders commented.

'Huh? Growing?' I frowned in confusion.

"Yes…" Another said, his voice slightly less raspy than the others'. "I assume in three or so more years we'll see his other Quirk, hopefully. Then we can train him."

I felt one of the men's hand on the back of my neck, and then brushed over the wrongness of my back. It sent me a violent shudder down my spine, and I immediately knew that I didn't like the sensation. Like, at all.

"No!" I couldn't help but to try to get away by swirling around and backing up abruptly. My motion threw me off-balance, unfortunately, and I ended landing on my butt.

"En-kun!" Like a flash, Mom was there, worried I'd injured myself; I wasn't, but it worried me that I couldn't help such a violent reaction from them touching my back.

Still, their satisfied smirks scared me more.

"Yes, his wings will grow quite nicely, if he doesn't like them being touched so young."

 _… Wings?_

I tried touching my back, my hand grazing the wrongness in my shoulder blades. Mom, realizing what I was trying to do, scuttled a bit away from the old men and helped me reach what I felt wrong. They felt like stumps, horribly sticking out. They twitched at my touch, and I felt them like mine. Plumes and down of grey popped from those stumps here and there.

My brain short-circuited as I tried to process this, chubby fingers straining to touch those stumps.

I… Those were wings? I–I had _wings_? That was my Quirk?

A smile slowly crept its way onto my face.

That… That was… so AWESOME! So far it seemed that getting reincarnated into this world had far exceeded my expectations and compensated getting sucked from my original life. Not that I had anyone who would miss me back there, but hey…

Then I thought of my name, Enzeru. I wasn't very sure, but it sounded pretty much like 'Angel'. I loved it. In a way, it represented all I had wanted to be in my previous world–someone to look up to, to protect and help those in need. But… for some reason I couldn't remember, that dream just vanished. This time, it'd be different.

I wanted to become this world's Guardian Angel. And I would do it, by becoming a Pro Hero and protecting those important to me.

* * *

 **... Well that was... Awfully short for my standards. I'll have to do much better from here on out.**

 **But oh well! See ya next chapter!**


	2. Chapter 2

**CHAPTER 2**

 **A/N: Thanks to those who fav/followed my fic, an all anonymous readers^^!**

 **Disclaimer: My Hero Academia belongs to the fabulous author Kohei Horikoshi. I only own a couple OCs.**

* * *

Three years came by rather quickly, and uneventful. Instead of sending me to kindergarten, Mom and the elders (and even some of our servants) took upon themselves the duty of educating me in my very first years of life. It kinda bummed me, because then I wouldn't be able to meet Bakugo Katsuki and Midoriya Izuku and stop the former from bullying the latter. Still, I later considered that this kind of relationship could be beneficial in the long term. I decided to not let him bully poor Midoriya too much, however. I still didn't like bullying, in whatever form it came.

Mom had a real knack for educating. No, seriously, I'm not saying this because she was my mother and I _adored_ her in every form. She really knew how to teach. I already knew much of the stuff she taught of course, but I still enjoyed how she explained me everything she could think of. I especially enjoyed how to write in Japanese, even though I found extremely difficult to learn about a thousand characters. Thankfully my anime-knowledge sped things up when relating the actual written words to their phonetic equivalents. Soon I'd lose my efficiency in English and become Japanese-native speaker.

The elders and the servants only taught me to behave properly in society as expected from my social status. Of course it really threw me off that I wouldn't be able to cuss as much as I used to in my past life, but in the end I went along with it. I'd save the cursory words when I was angry or something; they're a really stress-relief.

When I was four, my second Quirk manifested itself. It didn't come as a surprise for the elders or my mother apparently, having somewhat expected it.

My body could turn into hard diamond.

Or at least _most_ of my body could. For some reason I couldn't get it to disappear completely or to cover my body entirely. I mean, it was still awesome that I had extra-defense (I wondered if it would be useful to resist Nomu's attacks), but the heaviness of it difficulted my movements. The elders were _not_ pleased by it when I admitted it.

Thus, only two weeks after my Diamond Quirk reveal, they chose to formally train me in the use of both of my Quirks.

As I grew older, my wings grew alongside me, always twice the size of my body. It still irked me the molesting feeling of the plumes growing with the muscles and bones of the foreign appendages on my back. But as I grew older, I too got used to the feeling.

The training with the diamond went fairly well, actually. One of the elders had a variant of my Quirk, with gold instead, and used his knowledge to explain to me how to distribute it as evenly as I could through my body and get used to the weight. Because it was heavy, moving with stone on your whole body.

My flight lessons, however, weren't going as well as expected, because the only parent I had that actually had wings was deceased (my father). The elders had to rely on a Pro Hero named Aquila to teach me– a fact that didn't seat well for them, as if spending money in their family seemed inconceivable for them.

Aquila was a serious man with eagle-parts on his body, including eagle-sight, eagle-legs and wings instead of arms. He didn't talk much, but taught me well. I didn't spend that much time with him to actually grow a bond with him, but we got along pretty well I guess.

The first lesson he got to teach me was… open my wings.

Yeah. Sounds lame right? Well let me tell you guys something: it. Fucking. _Hurts_.

It was like trying to stretch a rubber band that was reinforced with iron, only the rubber band was your wing muscles and the iron, it was actually the diamond coating the upper part of my wings directly connected to my back. Every time I tried to open my wings, my back screamed murder to me, as well as the unused wing muscles. Even the _feathers_ seemed to protest against me! In summary: I lasted a glorious _two seconds_ before my wings immediately snapped back closed. Aquila stood over me as he evaluated my sweat-covered body and my wings. He then sighed, telling me that he couldn't teach me how to fly unless I learned how to open my wings in the first place. I resisted the urge to deadpan at him, only settling it with a "Yes, sir."

For the next months, the routine went like this: one hour a week, he'd teach me all the names of the muscles and the feathers that composed my wings, and how birds used them in flight. Then, each day for two hours, he'd get me to exercise those muscles by first opening my wings at full extent, hold it for five minutes, and then alternate between opening and closing for another five minutes.

Needless to say, the first two weeks were _nightmarish_. But I was determined to learn how to fly, even if my back screamed bloody murder at me or my wings trembled each time I used them. This was my dream since I was a kid in my previous life, dammit! And I was determined to achieve it!

Aquila was satisfied by my determination it seemed, but that only meant even more exercising hours for me, this time to the rest of my body.

Apparently, since I didn't have a tail like the other birds had (he _did_ have one, as he showed me later), I'd have to rely in the rest of my body to control my flight while airborne, and that meant either growing as thin as a bird to let the wind control me, or growing muscles to fight against it. I had to go for the latter choice, since being constantly hungry wasn't in my plans.

Thankfully, my mother was there to have my back, literally sometimes. She'd show that eyebrow-twitching thing when she saw the strenuous state of my body before politely murdering my teacher with her frigid words. Trust me, getting on my mother's bad side is not a good plan. Still, when she saw the passion in my eyes whenever I read about birds, she'd relent a bit and smile sadly.

We got one ritual each Sunday, in which the two of us would spend the day together in our room, alone, with no servants or elders or Aquilas to bother us. She'd tell me (at my insistence) about my Dad, revealing that he'd been an amazing Pro Hero named Crimson Crusader. She'd tell some of his works, how amazing he'd been. She never told me about how he died, and I never pried the information from her– even when talking about happy things, her eyes always saddened when concerning to my dad. After I began taking my flight classes (the whole 'opening-my-wings' I mean), she'd tell me to lay down on my stomach in my futon and massaging my aching back and wings, making sure not to touch the joint where back and wing merged– apparently it was the weakest part of my body, and the most sensitive.

I'd repay her kindness by cooking for her and preparing her tea– she didn't know how to cook apparently, and I had to learn from the cooks of the mansion to get to learn her favorite dishes and then some. Of course, Mom would tell me that I didn't need to repay her for being my mother, but I still felt the obligation to cuddle her as much as she cuddled me.

Plus, I felt kind of guilty when comparing her with my previous mother, the one I never got to know.

* * *

My routine changed again when I was five. I was called in by the elders along with my mother, and they explained to us that in order for me to go to a proper school, we'd have to move from the mountain mansion to one of the many luxury apartments that we possessed in Musutafu, at a good three-hour travel in train. The news came in not completely unexpected, but I _did_ feel surprised when they surrendered about my education. They gave us a week to gather our things and select which servants we wished to take with us.

"Hoseki Enzeru." The main elder looked down at me with his typical frown on his severe face. "We expect the utmost behavior from you and the best qualifications. You carry the honor and the name of one of the most prestigious families in the city, if not Japan itself. If we ever catch a word about you dropping your grades or misbehaving, you'll go back here immediately. Am I clear?"

"Yes, sir." I answered seriously. I _did_ have the intention of being a model student after all– being one meant a lot of open opportunities. I'd be a model student not for them or the family name, but because I wanted to be one.

However, I still flipped them the bird mentally for insinuating that my mother didn't know how to educate me.

We both bowed to the elders respectfully before retiring to our room. I noticed Mom had a pensive look on her face as she looked at the ceiling and the extensive views of the city in the distance through the windows to our left, occasionally biting her lower lip. I didn't know what was going through her head.

As if noticing me looking at her, she suddenly glanced down at me and smiled.

"Would you like to go look for Kaito-san, En-kun?" She asked tenderly. "We'll need a bit of help to get all the things ready. And also, tell Aquila-san about this."

"I'd already been informed."

The sudden appearance of the eagle-man almost surprised us both as he strolled down the hall in our direction. He still had the same serious expression, but I noticed a small twitching in his eyebrow that actually led me to think that he wasn't that pleased with the news.

"Oh, Aquila-san, good afternoon." My mother smiled at him. "Would you please help us? And dearie, please go find Kaito-san."

It didn't take us long at all, what with Kaito's super strength to help us carry all our things to one of our cars. _Not_ a limo, thank God– I wasn't about to make a show out of my family's wealth. Not even if it was a short run between the mansion and the train station.

The goodbyes at the train station were emotive, but short. Only the servants had come out to see us off– the only one that got to stay with us in the apartment was Kaito, our formal butler. I'd come to appreciate all the maids and butlers in the mansion, and apparently they loved me in turn. Mom was equally given the same warm treatment, her kind and somewhat meek demeanor making it really hard for you to hate or despise her in any way.

"Do your best out there, Young Master." One of the older maids held both my hands in hers and gripped them tightly.

"Yeah!" I nodded firmly with all the cuteness of a five-year-old could offer. "I'll miss you all!"

"Please take care, Kururi-san and the rest of you." Mom gave a small bow to the servants, who answered with a far deeper one.

"And you as well, Koe-sama."

"Bye-bye!" I waved at them, Kaito carrying me in his strong arms while entering the train (first class, oh yeah). Hey, I gotta try to act like the kid I was supposed to be sometimes.

To be honest, I was excited. I was finally going to go to Musutaru, the city where all My Hero Academia events take place! Or _will_ take place. Or I hoped they would. I had no way to know if I'd been born in an alternative universe where Midoriya and the rest weren't there, although I _did_ see All Might on TV's news reports. He was still at his full power, thankfully, saving other people with his eternal smile. Somehow, seeing his feats in person rather than in a manga felt really different. Like a screen had just lifted up from your eyes.

As I sat on the floor of our private compartment (my wings were a bit of a pain when sitting on what were supposed to be comfy sofas) my eyes focused on the TV that showed a zoom on All Might's smiling face, eyes somehow obscured. My arms brought my folded knees closer to my chest, brows furrowed in intense thought– I knew that in approximately ten years (five before the actual My Hero Academia plot began), All Might would begin to lose his power... and endanger his own life. I could avoid that from happening, get stronger in ten years to stop his fight against All for One; I could prevent _so many things from happening_...

But...

My enthusiasm ebbed a little. If I stopped All Might's fight, he wouldn't suffer, that much was undeniably true. If I stopped that fight, then the League of Villains wouldn't emerge, Shigaraki Tomura wouldn't hurt anyone...

But Midoriya Izuku wouldn't get One for All. Worse, it could mean he wouldn't meet All Might and not being cheered up by him. That could lead to disastrous consequences, from him becoming a villain to him positively losing his dream. And _everything in between_. The possibilities were, if not endless, at least not ideal and not My Hero Academia worthy. I mean, I _did_ want to change things of course, and I'd love to ease All Might's pain and avoid him losing his Quirk, but I wasn't even _sure_ if there was another way for Midoriya to get another Quirk.

Man, now I didn't know what to do. I felt like a jerk, knowing what All Might, what _Toshinori Yagi_ would have to go through. However, if I stopped that from happening, then the butterfly effect would be _disastrous_. It'd change _so many things_ that all I knew about the My Hero Academia stuff I already knew would be have to be thrown out of the window.

"Young Master, why that frown?"

I jumped out of my thoughts when Kaito's surprisingly soft voice called out to me. I turned to see the hulk of a butler, green eyes squinting down at me and a smile behind his grey-ish beard.

"O-oh, it's nothing Kaito-san!" I rubbed the back of my head with an awkward laugh. I swear, the man had a way of surprising me even with his towering height and heavy build.

His face softened. Apparently I hadn't convinced him enough, though I knew he wouldn't push me. "If you say so, Young Master."

Called it.

My body relaxed a tiny bit, though I felt a pang of guilt in my heart. The kind man had been at my side since I was three, helping my mother in my education with a devotion and loyalty worthy of the best of the butlers. Seeing genuine worry in his eyes as he continued reading his English copy of Shakespeare's _Hamlet,_ I couldn't help to look away from him and focus again on the TV, the news already moving on to another Pro Hero.

Would it be wrong if I shared my knowledge with someone? I was used to keeping things for myself in my past life, and here I seemed to have retained that feature about my past self. However, I never had knowledge of an _entire world_ before, and I knew that sooner or later the weight of me would drag me down in the most inconvenient of moments. I practically knew things about the freaking _future_ , and it wasn't even a Quirk, but my past memories!

For the first time, insecurity filled me. Why did I retain my memories? Why did I end up here? I looked down at my diamond-covered hands and then over my shoulder at one of my wings. Why did I have these Quirks? Did someone (or something) expect me to change things, or should I stride along the story as best I could without changing it?

I was so confused. Maybe the fact that I was finally going to live in Musutaru (and closer to the protagonists) had opened a dam I didn't know I had in my head, one that retained my insecurities and thoughts I hadn't realized were there in the first place.

 _Because in the mountain mansion, I wasn't believing myself that this was real_ , I suddenly thought, one of my fingers caressing the outer feathers of my wing in thought. _Somehow, deep inside me, I thought of this as a well-elaborated dream._

It didn't cover what I really thought of this reality, but it came really close. Having my wings and the diamond coating my arms and chest served to reassure me that I really was in My Hero Academia universe, of course, but a part of me didn't realize just _what_ I had just gotten myself into until I heard the elders telling me I'd be living in Musutafu.

 _No_ , I shook my head. _Rather, since I saw All Might on TV._

That sounded about right. The moment I saw All Might, smile as wide as his face would allow and rescuing civilians from evil villains, something shook inside of me. And _no,_ it wasn't a fanboying Midoriya-level moment. It was much more serious.

 _This is real_. They all existed. All Might. Midoriya Izuku, Bakugo Katsuki. 1-A Class. Eraserhead. All the other Heroes.

Then the League of Villains. Shigaraki Tomura.

All for One.

The Eight Precepts of Death.

As I turned my sight away from the TV and out of the train window, seeing the fast-approaching train station and Musutafu City, I frowned. If I wanted to survive, I had to play my cards well. I couldn't afford being cocky and risk losing my head here, both figuratively _and_ literally. I'd try to change things, but only the most pressing ones. At a large scale, everything would continue its course, but I'll be changing things.

 _Wait, am I getting ahead of myself?_ I suddenly thought. _Maybe I'm years ahead of the story, like, maybe All Might is not the Symbol of Peace yet. Maybe Midoriya and the others hadn't even been_ born _yet... Shit, should've thought about this before!_

By the time we got off the train, I was still mulling over those thoughts. The limo that the elders arranged to meet us at the train station was patiently waiting, surrounded by the curious standby people. I could even see a couple kids openly gaping at how luxurious the car looked, a butler and the chofer waiting for the three of us. Kaito walked briskly ahead of us two, carrying our bags, and talked in a low voice with the butler holding the back-door open. Mom took me by the hand to avoid me getting lost in the crowds and walked with all the graciousness of a queen. I just tried to not make a fool of myself while the bystanders made a path for us. I was aware that most of them were eyeing my wings in amazement.

As we stood before the limo, the butler and the chofer bowed to us, the former taking Mom's purse and helping getting inside the car. She smiled softly in thanks and stepped inside, settling comfortably in one of the seats.

I was about to follow, when...

"Ah!"

That single exclamation, for some reason, stopped me in my tracks. I looked around–

 ** _Tap_**

–before something tapped me in the side of my left foot. Looking down, my sight set on a simple rubber ball with green lines. Unsure if it was some kind of covert attack from a villain, I gingerly picked it up and rolled it in my hand in curiosity. It didn't do anything. It looked quite banged up, and the seams were a bit off on one side, but it was evident that the owner cared for it.

"Young Master?" Kaito called to me, and I glanced up at him over my shoulder. "It's time to go."

"Just a minute, Kaito-san." I smiled apologetically.

My glance swiped over the crowd. The people had started moving again, though most still seemed interested in us, as if we were some kind of circus animals displayed for their enjoyment. My brow creased at the unpleasant thought.

Then, my eyes widened when I caught something among the crowd.

Or rather, some _one_.

It was exactly as Horikoshi-sensei portrayed him as a kid. Big, brilliant green eyes, with a matching green mop of hair. His freckled face seemed unsure and a bit frightened, and his hands had a vice-grip on a woman's skirts. It was adorable, seeing him with a black All Might T-shirt, brown shorts and red sneakers, and I felt something relax within me when I locked eyes with the Midoriya Izuku of visibly my age or even a bit younger.

The woman that Midoriya had such a firm grip was, obviously, his mother. She had such a kind look on her face that I instantly liked her, with her green hair that her son inherited, and the freckles too. Apparently she was trying to urge her son into asking me to give his ball back, but Midoriya junior seemed a little _too scared_ of me.

It saddened me, that the guy thought that of me. So, swallowing my own nerves down, I put on my best smile and walked over to him, purposefully slow and eyes settled on the increasingly nervous kid. He even began to sweat profusely, and his body disappeared behind his mother's skirts in an attempt to hide. It was useless though, because with a coercing hand, his mother pushed him before her... and within my range. I swear the guy seemed about to piss himself.

When I stopped before him, I smiled even wider and extended the ball to him.

He blinked. His shoulders relaxed, more in confusion than in relief, as he eyed both me and his toy alternatively.

"This is yours, right?" I finally settled to say something.

My voice startled poor Midoriya, judging the way he almost jumped. I contained the urge to laugh however, fearing he'd think I was making fun of him.

"I... Y-yeah..." He nodded meekly.

Still, he made no move to take it from my hands. I tilted my head to the side.

"Is there something wrong?" I asked, this time genuinely confused. Was I that scary for him?

"N-no! I was just..." He swallowed visibly (and audibly) before taking his ball with shaking hands. "I-I didn't mean it... I'm sorry..."

"It's alright." I smiled.

His mother –for the life of mine I couldn't remember her name– smiled down at me and then nudged at her son. "Izuku, what do you say to the kind young master?"

"O-oh! Thank you!" He quickly bowed deeply at the waist at me, gripping the ball tightly in his hands so that it wouldn't slip away again.

I just continued to smile in answer, returning a shallower bow in return, and then another at his mother.

"Young Master, we have to go." Kaito called out to me again, this time a tad more impatiently. Not rising his voice, because our butlers shouldn't raise their voices at their masters.

I was tempted to yell back 'Coming!' but the elders taught me not to yell or talk in such a simple manner. Instead, I settled to turn my head and nod at him curtly. Then I turned to Midoriya and his mother, and bowed again at them.

"I must go. Take care of yourselves please."

"You too, young master." Midoriya's mother answered in kind, also bowing. She'd long realized I belonged to a wealthy family and made sure she and her son showed the proper respect to me.

I turned and walked back to the limo, nodding at Kaito and the butler that had been waiting for me. Then I looked at Midoriya and his mom and waved at them with a happy smile on my face, it widening when Midoriya shyly returned it, his other hand holding the ball that caused our encounter. I sat beside my mother, her smiling knowingly at me and putting her arms around me in a tender manner. Kaito sat in the seat opposite ours and ordered the chofer and the butler sitting in the front to depart.

"He seemed like a good boy." Mom commented, her slender fingers tenderly weaving through my white locks as I settled my head on her lap.

I closed my eyes and hummed softly. I heard Kaito opening his book and settling against the seat to read it.

"Mom?" I mumbled, receiving a questioning hum from her. "Could I be his friend?"

Other mothers, especially the ones that belonged to a wealthy family, normally restricted their children into making friends with those of a lower social status. They'd be worried, or even scandalized, that their precious kids would lose their time in those that didn't deserve it.

But my mom wasn't like them.

"Of course, En-kun." She said without missing a beat– I could sense the smile on her face. I smiled in kind, nuzzling my face in her thighs.

Somehow, it relieved me that she didn't say that I could do whatever I wanted.

* * *

Our new apartment was on the last floor of a seven-floor building not far from the shopping center of town. Modern, spacious, and well-illuminated. I was happy to see that my wings would not be a nuisance here, for me or anyone, with how big the place was.

I was delighted to see that I had a bedroom all for myself, along with a bathroom equipped with jacuzzi. Perhaps mindful of my wings, and how big they were going to grow, everything was king-sized here, from the bed to the jacuzzi, even the chairs! Everything seemed new and well-cared for, which surprised me since no one had been in here before. Kaito later explained me that all the houses we owned were maintained once a week for any guest that might move in unexpectedly.

After I helped Kaito and the butler (whose name I learned was Akira) get my things and my clothes properly installed in my bedroom, I moed around the house to familiarize myself with it. Unlike the mansion at the mountain, where everything was traditionally Japanese, this apartment reminded me more of an European house, with clean and ample spaces, creamy colors for the walls and doors of a solid dark-red wood. When you entered the apartment, the little hallway opened to a huge room in the center that included the kitchen, dining room and living room, exquisitely harmonized together with the occasional green detail to break the monochromatic white colors. In the far left corner of the living room, another hallway opened and led to my Mom's and my bedroom, each with their own bathroom incorporated. There was no open garden, much to my displeasure, but the huge balcony that overlooked the entire city at our feet compensated it a bit. I intended to occupy it most of my flight training time, to extend my wings without knocking everything over.

All in all, I _loved_ our new home. And judging the happy smile on Mom's face, she agreed with me.

After that, Mom convinced our butlers to let us both go to what was going to be my new elementary school, alone. The principal of course was really attentive and the staff seemed nice, letting us buy my new uniform and books for a reasonable price. The building was massive and had all the facilities a kid would need, the principal assured my mother, and I'd receive top-notch education here. I didn't know if she bought all that, but she agreed that everything so far looked well enough for her an quickly inscribed me in here. Due to our social status, the paperwork was handled rather quickly.

"Are you nervous, En-kun?" Mom asked me in our way home, our walk slow as we were in no hurry.

I was, a bit. Not in an academic sense, or in the 'meeting-new-people' sense. I just– I didn't know _what_ to expect. If I met any of the My Hero Academia students, be it from 1-A or 1-B or whichever class, I wasn't sure if I wanted to befriend them and potentially change things in the future... Then again I already met Midoriya, albeit for a brief moment...

"Don't worry, my boy." Apparently Mom interpreted my silence as a yes. "Everything will be okay. You'll see."

I hoped so. I still had a couple weeks before April 1st (and thus my first day at school) came around. I'd have plenty of time to figure out what to do.

* * *

 **A/N: Man this took longer than expected somehow. Well, I'm somewhat satisfied with it. Hope you liked it.**

 **-Guest: Thank you so much for the tips Guest. I'm afraid I can't change Enzeru's age, but I added some things and changed his dialogue either way. There is a reason, still not explained but a bit implied, why his family isn't that surprised at his apparently fast development.**

 **-Livelikeme123: Thank you! I hoped you continue liking it. Here it's a small meeting between little adorable Midoriya and Enzeru.**


	3. Chapter 3

**CHAPTER** **3**

 **A/N: Thanks to those who fav/followed my fic, and all anonymous readers!**

 **Disclaimer: My Hero Academia belongs to the fabulous author Kohei Horikoshi. I only own a couple OCs.**

* * *

 _"PETER S. MOONHILL! GET DOWN FROM THAT TREE_ RIGHT NOW!"

 _"But Mr Adams, Ari's kitty's up here, I'm just taking it for her—!"_

 _"A cat's not worth you breaking your neck if you fall mister! Come on down before I call your stepmom!"_

 _"He's right Pete. C'mon bro, this isn't funny…"_

 _"Geez, you're all making such a fuss over nothing… Wait just a bit longer, I'm just about to—!"_

 _ **Snap!**_

 _"PETER!"_

* * *

I woke up abruptly from the nightmare, heart beating so fast in my chest it felt like trying to get out via my throat. I had to look around a couple times to recognize my king-sized room I'd been living for two weeks with my mom and our butlers.

 _ **—This isn't my room—**_

I shuddered, and disentangled myself from the cocoon of sheets I created during my restless sleep, to get in the bathroom and splash some cold water in the face.

 _ **Knock knock**_

Startled, I jumped and bumped my hip with the sink, drawing a pained hiss out of my lips.

"Young Master?" Muffled and in a low voice as to not awake the others, Akira called out to me from the other side of the bedroom door.

Rubbing my throbbing hip, I glanced at the alarm clock at the bed stand, the glowing numbers showing the hour: 4:39 am. _Too damn early to be awake._

Grumbling to myself, I opened the door to see Akira standing outside, impeccable and ready despite of how early it was. Clean-shaven, and pink hair neatly brushed away from his face, he wore a worried expression on his face as his dark-red eyes glanced down at me.

"I'm sorry I woke you up, Akira-san." I apologized, a hand rubbing one of my eyes.

"It's no trouble, Young Master." He bowed at me, deferent as all butlers in our household. His concerned frown didn't disappear however. "If I may be so bold, you feel troubled. May I be of assistance to the Young Master?"

My lips furrowed. Akira's Quirk, as I found only a couple days after settling in our new home, implied some degree of emotional empathy and the capacity to manipulate someone else's emotional behavior. He'd be able to determine a person's overall mood and change it as he pleased. He could calm everyone's nerves in an incoming fight… or stir them on.

Granted, that meant keeping a secret from him would be quite difficult. Telling him something could be dangerous in the long-run, not only for me, but also for him and whoever he tells the secret to.

"Thank you Akira-san, but I only need a moment to relax." I finally settled with a smile. I _did_ feel touched that he looked so concerned about my well-being, no matter if he was my butler or not. "Could you make me some tea? I think I won't be able to sleep for much longer."

His eyes didn't show anything, though he did observe me a bit more closely. "Of course, Young Master. Any particular flavor?"

I smiled. "Whichever you like, Akira-san. I'll be on the balcony stretching if you don't find me here."

He bowed and left, and I closed the door and rested my back against it as best my wings would allow, sighing to myself. Now that sleep had eluded me, I had no choice but to prepare myself early for my first day in school.

But first, stretching.

* * *

Half-an-hour later, Mom woke up and found me on the balcony making the stretching exercises Aquila recommended me to do for my wings. It had become easier to extend my wings and keep them open for a longer period of time, but it still sent a pang of pain down my back whenever I forced them too far or for too much time. They still grew up nicely, according to Aquila, so as long as I didn't try to strain the muscles to the point of no return or try to fly by myself, then I wouldn't have muscle atrophy.

I finally finished the exercises and turned to see Mom holding the tea Akira made for me, a sad smile on her face as she rested her hip against the doorframe. She was still on her unicorn pajamas (a detail I loved about her, that she had a bit of an infantile side) and slippers on.

I beamed in greeting at her and went to hug her around the waist. She laughed and brushed my tangled-up white hair, not concerned about me being all sweaty in the least. At first I had my reservations, but she'd just brushed it off with a laugh and told me she loved me in every way I presented myself at her. Even all sweaty.

"You're up early, En-kun. Is there something wrong?"

My simple happiness dimmed for a moment, dampened by doubt. Should I lie to her? Akira would certainly feel it, but Mom wouldn't pry on my feelings or force him to tell her about them.

It was her way of showing me her trust.

"Nuh-uh, I just couldn't sleep." I smiled up to her, squashing down the feeling of guilt I felt briefly.

She let me go and knelt to my eye-level, scrutinizing me for a moment before a smile grazed her lips again.

"Nervous about your first day in school? It is a great step to take, young man."

"Heheh, I know!" I smiled goofily, scratching the side of my nose. "I'm not that nervous now, I'm just a bit funny in the stomach."

She giggled. "That's good then. Go grab a shower, dear. Akira-san will have breafkast ready for you when you're finished."

Feeling my stomach rumble at the sound of 'breakfast', I hurried to do so, not even letting her finish her sentence before I practically _zoomed_ to my bathroom and into the shower. Taking care of one's body was highly important, and I found out that I had to take _extra_ care of my own wings, handle each of the feathers individually. I had to coordinate myself with the diamond to cover as little of myself as possible and clean the skin under it. It was good practice for my Quirks however, so I didn't make much of a complaint about it.

The school uniform, unfortunately, didn't have room for my wings, so Kaito had to sit down and rearrange it so that I could put on the shirt and jacket more comfortably. He sewed holes for my wings of course, but he also added a zip on the back so that I could put on the shirt from the back instead of the front. I ended up _never_ using the buttons at the front, them being only decoration.

During breakfast, Mom and I convinced Kaito and Akira to sit down and eat with us too. The former was already used to our attempts of familiarity, but the latter seemed a bit scandalized. Masters and butlers shouldn't mingle, he'd say. It was only when Mom frowned disapprovingly and threatened him to throw him out that the poor man finally relented, still a bit miffed.

I had to refrain myself from laughing when, once we finished, he bolted into the kitchen to distract himself with the dishes.

"Would you like me to carry you there, Mistress?" Kaito asked as Mom and I got to the door.

"Don't worry, Kaito-san. It's not that far actually; En-kun and I will go on foot." Mom smiled at him and helped me with my shoes (I still couldn't bend my back that far with my wings, so I needed her help with them more often than not, much to my embarrasment).

"As you wish." He replied with an elegant bow, not showing what he thought as always. His green eyes showed a warmth I often found lacking in Akira's red ones.

"Are you ready, En-kun?"

I nodded enthusiastically, and took the hand my Mom offered. "See ya later, Kaito-san, Akira-san!"

"Have a good day, Young Master." They bowed again and replied in unison.

And with that, we were off.

Mom and I chatted for a bit in the way to school, but I was keeping my eyes open for any of the future 1-A students. I knew not many would be attending my school, since it was especially for rich people like me, but I had the hope that maybe we crossed paths or something.

Alas, it didn't happen.

Maybe it was too soon for me to meet any of them.

One in school, the entrance was bursting with students. They all chatted amiably, filling the air with laughter and brief yelling. Mom accompanied me inside the building and get me to my homeroom teacher, but we only needed to talk with the secretary to get both their name, my schedule and my classroom. She left after making sure I knew how to go to the teachers office.

Sometimes my mother smothered me a bit.

I had to ask again to the secretary to get to the teachers office, but in the end I managed to avoid the swarm of students (my wings attracted a bit of attention, but the myriad of different Quirks showing off allowed me to blend better) and get to the door. Nervousness filled me again as I knocked on the door.

A nice-looking lady opened, quickly looking down at me. Her braided pink-and-blue hair rested on one shoulder, and her black eyes shone with unmistakable intelligence. She didn't dress sharply or too shabby. I immediately liked her, for some reason.

"Oh, hello there!" She smiled warmly at me. "You're new, right?"

"Yes Ma'am. My name is Hoseki Enzeru."

"My, you're so polite." Her smile widened even more, before checking on a folder she carried. "Yes, you're in my class. I'm your homeroom teacher, Toriumi-sensei."

"Nice to meet you, Toriumi-sensei." I bowed.

"I think I like you already, Hoseki-kun."

 _ **DING DONG DING DONG**_

Startled, I almost jumped at the bells that sounded loudly through speakers. Toriumi, however, just lifted her head and looked at the clock hanging on the wall.

"My, it's this time already?" She gathered her things and smiled down at me again. "Come with me, Hoseki-kun, and I'll present you to the class."

 _Oh man, I'm already having twists in the stomach._ I nodded and followed dutifully a step behind her, trying to remember the way to my new class and not make a fool of myself next time. I liked that the building had so spacious hallways and massive windows that showed the sports area.

The noise inside my classroom, while not boisterous, was annoyingly loud. I knew they were all five-years-old with the right of behaving like the children they were. But man, didn't they know the meaning of 'silence'?

"Wait here, Hoseki-kun." Toriumi indicated me as she went to open the door. "I'll tell you when you can come inside."

I nodded again, and she entered the class with a final encouraging smile at me.

Once alone in the ample hallway, nerves began playing tricks on me. I began preening my feathers, making sure none was out of place, and hid the diamond under my uniform. I knew I was being paranoid, but maybe revealing _both_ my Quirks wasn't a good idea. I couldn't hide my white-feathered wings neatly folded on my back, but I guess it didn't matter if they believed I only had flight as my Quirk.

"Come on in!"

When I finally heard Toriumi's voice, I breathed in and opened the door, getting inside quickly and standing next to my new homeroom teacher.

Immediately, whispers filled the class. I tried to keep my inexpressive face, but in reality my hands were already sweating and my collar felt just a little tight for my liking. I heard some giggling and some girls blushing when I looked over at them. I noticed that not many had extra limbs Quirks like me, just a couple; the others just seemed more human-like.

"This is Hoseki Enzeru." Toriumi presented me to the class. "Starting today, he'll be one of this class. Make sure to treat him well everybody!"

"Yes, Toriumi-sensei!" Everyone replied, some in eagerness, others unconcerned. Typical first day for a newbie.

"There's a free seat right next to the window, Hoseki-kun. Why don't you go sit down?"

"Yes, Toriumi-sensei." I smiled up at her and went to sit down where she pointed me, putting down my bag and trying to get comfortable in the seat with my wings. It seemed the guys designing the chairs didn't take into account those children with appendages on the back like me.

Oh well.

The day went by rather quickly, and soon I remembered just _why_ I didn't like school. It was boring, and restraining. Even with how kind and caring Toriumi was, I felt the urge to go out and run in the courtyard with all my might. Luckily my twenty-five year-old mind kept me on the uncomfortable chair and attend to the teachers dutifully, like an heir from a wealthy family was supposed to do.

At lunchtime, a crowd of children (mostly _girls_ ) gathered around me and probed at me for answers to their questions. I just smiled with all the politeness the elders embedded on me and answered as best I could, but inwardly I cringed at their evident snobbiness (even with how young they were) and sense of superiority when they talked about their _rich_ families and what they could have with their money. There was a couple kids that weren't as bad as the others fortunately, and I made sure to focus on those two and _politely_ ignore the others. They quickly caught on my evident dismissal and soon left me alone with the two kids.

One of them was a guy with tinted glasses and a crooked smile on his face. His name was Gurakumi Shioto and was an extremely nerdy guy with the tendency to bite his nails down to raw skin when nervous... which was almost always. He told me his Quirk was shooting laser from his eyes and named himself (ironically enough) Cyclops. That served as an insult from the others, but he had grown fond of that nickname, so he didn't mind the others calling him that.

The other was a stocky boy too, with a brutish appearance and the strength of a bull. Matsuoka Tadasuke and Gurakumi were childhood friends, and had been self-appointed the glasses-boy's bodyguard to ward off any bully that tried to pick on the nerdy boy. He didn't have much intelligence, but he had a loyalty worthy of a fierce bulldog. His Quirk was rather straightforward: the strength of a bull, with matching horns on his forehead to match.

I really liked them both, and I was inwardly glad that I wasn't going to be alone in my years of childhood.

After classes, however, there was a _third_ boy that called my attention.

It was because of this person that I took advantage of Matsuoka and Gurakumi leaving early (apparently the latter's father was rather sick and needed their help) and went to meet him before he left the classroom.

"Hello."

I wasn't sure if he was surprised to see me interacting with him, or if I simply surprised him, but he turned around and met my eyes with a surprisingly cool stare. I kept my polite smile on and bowed slightly.

"My name is Hoseki Enzeru. Nice to me—"

"I know who you are."

 _Wow, jerk much huh._

I tried to keep my polite smile though, because I knew he wouldn't be much of a jerk in the future. I just had to cope with him in his early years, and hopefully develop a friendship with him strong enough to change things. Of course that wasn't the only reason I sought him out, but at least it was one of the primary ones.

I also wanted to be friends with one of the main four fighters of the My Hero Academia series. Who wouldn't?

As we flooded out of the building, I kept myself close to the 'jerk' but with what I intended to be a comfortable silence. I knew this guy wasn't really fond of inane chatter, so I simply accompanied him, bag in my hand and a smile on my face.

Still, my head raced while I watched him from the corner of my eye. So far he seemed exactly like he was supposed to be in ten years, but the scar that would later be one of his main features was not there yet. Still, his red-and-white hair and his mismatched eyes served me to recognize Todoroki Shoto rather well.

I didn't expect him to be such a jerk, though. Hopefully it was just because he didn't know me yet and I practically imposed myself on him.

Mom was already waiting for me outside, holding what looked like a shopping bag with items on it. I beamed when I saw her, but quickly frowned in confusion when I saw just _who_ she was talking with. A pale, slender woman with flowing white hair, smiling in amusement as my mother told her something.

At first I didn't know just _what_ was wrong with that image. Sure Mom wasn't a social butterfly, but she _did_ know how to engage in a conversation with other people; it shouldn't be surprising that she found someone to talk with while waiting for her son. The familiarity which she talked with the other woman could be interpreted as finding a common topic, like having children to take care of and that coincidentally went to the same school. I didn't _understand_ just what was wrong until it clicked on me, and the realization stopped in my tracks.

I didn't even notice Todoroki doing exactly the same thing beside me.

Flowing white hair. Fair skin. Slender figures. Mom was the splitting image of the woman, and viceversa, with the sole exception of their eyes.

It was with a numb mind and skin that Todoroki and I got close to the two women, so deep in conversation that they didn't notice us approaching until I called out to my Mom.

"Oh, En-kun! You're already here." Mom smiled down at me, as if she didn't notice our numb expressions as we looked alternatively at the two of them. "And I see you've already met Shoto-kun." She knelt down before Todoroki and smiled warmly at him. "You've really grown up."

"Enzeru has grown up a lot too." The woman beside Mom (with strikingly beautiful grey eyes) commented tersely with a smile on her own– one that looked remarkably _similar_ to my own mother's. "It looks like they were destined to meet each other."

"Fufu, maybe."

Todoroki and I exchanged a stupefied look and then looked up at our mothers.

"Mom, what is happening?" I decided to ask a bit awkwardly.

"You know them, Mom?" Todoroki also asked.

Mom and Todoroki's mother both laughed. Then mine smiled at both of us. "I'm sorry boys, we didn't mean to confuse you two. En-kun, this is my younger sister, Todoroki Yuki. The boy at your side is Todoroki Shoto, your cousin."

* * *

 **A/N: Again, awfully short, but I just couldn't find a way to continue the chapter.**

 **As you noticed, Todoroki still hasn't got his scar. As he got it as a child, I just put Enzeru to meet him before that happens. Also, since his mom doesn't have a name (or at least it hasn't been revealed) I just went with a name for her.**

 **Toriumi won't have that much importance later on, but Matsuoka and Gurakumi will be Enzeru's friends during childhood. Let's see what happens with Todoroki though.**

 **And now, review answers:**

 **-M: Thank you so much! I'm glad you liked how I introduce everyone. At first I thought it looked a bit whacky and abrupt, but I'm glad you don't think so! I hope you continue liking it and giving me your input on the story!**

 **-Livelikeme123: Yes, diamonds! He needs some sort of strong Quirk to face the future, and although his wings are nice, they only give him flight. Yes, now it's not that evident because he's a kid, but when Enzeru gets older, he'll have to maintain that balance even more frequently than now.**

 **-ARSLOTHES: Thank you! Here it is, hope you like it!**

 **Well, see you guys next chapter!**


	4. Chapter 4

**CHAPTER 4**

 **A/N: Thanks to those who fav/followed my fic, and all anonymous readers!**

 **Disclaimer: My Hero Academia belongs to the fabulous author Kohei Horikoshi. I only own a couple OCs.**

* * *

After the Big Reveal (yes, with capital letters!) both Todoroki and I were left in a state of 'What-the-fuck-are-you-telling-us-now?' Mom never talked about her family, so this certainly came as a surprise. Todoro– I mean, _Shoto_ apparently felt the same, because he just kept eyeing the three of us with a mixture of confusion, disorientation and not a small amount of surprise in his young face.

Apparently, Yuki and Koe's parents had been a poor family, worried about his two daughters. Their father didn't want them to leave in the same environment he'd had to grow up in, knowing a woman had even less possibilities of survival in such a harsh reality, and had urged them to find a suitable spouse in the higher society. Mom and Yuki left the most gruesome details out because we were only kids, but my adult mind could imagine what kind of hell the three of them had to go through in their lives; a heart-clenching feeling of pity filled me for a moment as I looked at the two women, one of whom I learned to love with all my heart.

Providence smiled down on not only one, but _both_ of them as they each fell in love with honorable and wealthy men. My father, and Todoroki Enji. The fortune they gathered served to give my grandfather a new life, but he hadn't had much time to enjoy it before he passed away from an unknown illness. Of course, Mom and Yuki were saddened by the outcome, and promised themselves to live the life their father wanted them to live; one without regrets, and full with love. My grandmother, who still lived, helped them with the limited resources she had.

As Shoto and I listened to our mothers, I felt... _strange_. Sure, having one of the main protagonists as your family had to have its advantages, but it also put me in an uncomfortable position. For instance, I knew perfectly well the incident between Yuki and her son because of the former's mental illness, his future scar and her internship in a mental hospital. By making me become Shoto's cousin, could I be able to change that? Could I stop Yuki from spilling boiling water on her own son's face, thus allowing her to stay at his side as he grew up with the beast of a father he had?

That mental reminder of Todoroki Enji stopped my thoughts. Could I do something about his attitude _at all_?

As the four of us walked down the streets, I subtly observed both Yuki and Shoto, searching for mistreatment on their bodies. I already surmised from Shoto's cold demeanor that Enji had begun his harsh training (you could see how, instead of a bubbly little kid, he was quite quiet and even a bit submissive in comparison of someone like Gurakumi), so that part of the older Todoroki's aspect I was too late to change.

From what I remembered, it was Enji's brutal treatment to Shoto and his obsession of becoming the Hero #1 via his son that got her fights with her husband; putting that apart, she did really love him, as far as I knew. I didn't know for sure if Enji loved her back to be honest, but I was willing to give the man the benefit of the doubt, if only because I didn't want to see my aunt hurting. Or Shoto.

Either Yuki had too much experience masking her bruises under a lot of make-up, or Enji knew just where to strike so that the clothes hid his henious actions. Shoto only had a small limp in the left leg that he hid quite well. Nevertheless, I knew what they were going through, and the simple knowledge set my veins on fire with rage.

But…

"En-kun?"

I jumped at my mother's voice. At some point, the four of us had arrived to our house and Mom had noticed how quiet I've been during the whole walk. Understandable; normally I was a chipper kid who loved to talk someone's ear off.

What she didn't know, was that I loved to do that only to her, because she was my precious Mom.

Said Mom was looking down at me with a half-amused, half-concerned smile on her face. Yuki and Shoto had begun talking about something that every now and then brought a smile on my cousin. I didn't know if my aunt considered we were talking about something private or if she was reminding her son to behave properly in someone else's house.

"Are you alright?" Mom asked me, a worried twinkle in her eye. "You've been awfully silent…"

But I smiled. "I'm okay, Mom. I'm just nervous because I have a cousin, and I don't know how to behave."

Mom's face softened. True, I didn't have any siblings, and the lack of children back in the mountain mansion left me at a disadvantage of _how_ I should behave with a kid of my age, much less family. If it were the elders, I was expected to behave with the utmost respect and treat with the other at an arm's length. But that was too much to ask for a kid who craved for contact that wasn't constantly his mother.

In my previous life, I only had my baby brother to worry about, but I'd been so occupied with searching part-time jobs to support both him and myself when I finally could become independent and carried him with me to the horrendous flat I owned. But here, I thought I didn't have any family besides the elders and Mom. The former were too stiff and worried with status and their own prestigious name to worry about me, so they only counted as 'half-family'. The latter, well… She was my _mother_. And as much as I loved her, it just couldn't compare with the feeling of having a sibling to share all your thoughts with.

I glanced over at Yuki and Shoto, and how they conspiratorially snickered under their breaths, as if they were sharing a secret only they knew. A knot in my stomach loosened at the sight; it was heartwarming the evident adoration Shoto felt for his mother. It was like the relationship Mom and I had.

"Don't worry En-kun." Mom said, bringing my attention back to her; she was smiling softly as she followed my gaze to the pair. "You'll get along wonderfully."

And with that, she incorporated and, setting the shopping bag on the floor, began searching for the keys on her purse. At that, as if previously decided, Yuki and Shoto stopped talking and waited for Mom to get us inside the house. They still had smiles on their faces (well, my cousin had more of a subdued smirk), and that brought a smile on my face too.

Maybe Mom was right. Maybe I could get past Shoto's iron defenses.

"Akira-san, Kaito-san!" Mom called out, and I slipped in past her with a bright smile on my face.

"We're _back_!" I exclaimed at the top of my lungs, with Mom shushing me as to not molest the neighbors.

Both butlers appeared, bowing and greeting us in unison. Akira had a pink apron around his waist and a cloth on his pink head, while Kaito had slipped off his jacket and had the sleeves of his white shirt rolled up just before his elbows. Judging the smell coming from the kitchen, they'd been cooking something that smelled wonderfully. I recognized curry and some hint of mushrooms with garlic, and it made my mouth water at the mere thought of their cooking.

"We have visitors today." Mom gestured towards Yuki and Shoto, who bowed respectfully. "My sister Yuki and her son."

If they were surprised, they didn't show it at all. Both merely bowed deeply at the waist, lower than my aunt and cousin.

"Nice to meet you." Kaito then stepped forward to take the shopping bag from Mom's hand and brought it to the kitchen. Akira stayed a bit longer. "Food will be ready in a few more minutes. May I prepare some appetizers for the wait?"

"I'd like some of your wonderful tea, Akira-san. What do you think, Yuki?" Mom turned to her sister as we all slipped out of our shoes and wore the slippers waiting at the shoe cabinet. "Would you like something to eat?"

"Some tea would be lovely, thank you." Yuki smiled.

"And what about the Young Masters?" The robust man looked down at us.

I looked at Shoto, who looked back at me. I smiled goofily and returned to Kaito, who already had an amused smile on his bearded face, knowing what I'd say.

"I want some dango!" I smiled goofily with my hands behind my head.

"You and your sweet tooth, En-kun…" Mom sighed but smiled while shaking her head. Shoto had a confused face, not understanding just why I wanted dango at this hour, and without tea to complement it.

"It shall be ready soon." Kaito bowed and gestured for us to sit down at the dining table. Out of respect, Shoto and I waited until our mothers sat down before sliding on our seats ourselves.

I was secretly amused by Shoto's confused expression as he looked at the ultra-modern flat Mom and I owned. In comparison to his traditional, Japanese-style house, ours was an epithome to modernity. We didn't even have the wooden flooring he'd grown so used to.

The food was delicious as always. I'd always been a huge fan of mushrooms, and in this life I continued having that love. I didn't even notice how happy I was until Mom remarked with amusement my slightly flapping wings; apparently I always did that whenever I was happy. We didn't talk during lunch, but occasionally Mom and Yuki would engage in a brief conversation, generally about their respective lives. Yuki told us about her other three children apart from Shoto, and about Enji and his works as a Pro Hero; I knew I wasn't the only one who noticed her slightly tense smile or Shoto's disapproving frown whenever his father was mentioned.

As tersely as she could, Mom changed subjects and talked about cooking, despite her not being really proficient at this. Apparently Yuki took the bait willingly and drew a genuine smile as she stepped on more comfortable grounds, talking about recipes and cooking tips to her oblivious older sister. I just listened in silence, aching to know about the real relationship Yuki had with her husband, but also knowing that she wouldn't say anything in front of children, much less her own son.

"Mom, can I take Shoto to my room?" I asked my mother, smiling as goofily as a five-year-old kid was supposed to.

Apparently I've surprised her, considering her almost startled look. For a moment I inwardly fumbled with my thoughts, wondering if I'd given out something that had led Mom to believe I was acting too maturely for a five-year-old kid.

But then she gave one of her pretty smiles. "That's a wonderful idea, En-kun. Go have fun, okay?"

"Yeah!" I nodded, scrambling off my seat and taking Shoto's hand to drag him to my room, pointedly ignoring his confused protests.

No way in _Hell_ was I gonna wait to see if Mom had caught me in the act.

To be honest, I'd acted on a whim. I knew Shoto didn't like me very much, so having some buddy time with him would end in either a really awkward moment, or one situation that could end quite badly. I didn't know much about his personal preferences, apart from him liking the wooden flooring of his house and being used to living in a wealthy environment. I had the feeling talking about All Might could be disastrous (considering Enji was 'training' him to 'dethrone' the Symbol of Peace), so that was an off-limits topic. I doubted he'd be interested in videogames like me, and it was just _too soon_ to talk about school homework or the guys and girls at our class. Talking about our Quirks was also prohibited; Shoto's was a combination of his father's and his mother's, the whole reason why Enji was so obsessed in him becoming his instrument to become #1 Pro Hero in the world.

 _Gah!_ This was so Goddamn stressful! What could I talk about, the _weather_?!

I tried not to let my thoughts show on my face as I excitedly opened the door to my room and let him inside with all the childish pride of a kid who loved his room.

"Here we are!" I rushed to the middle of the room and extended my arms. "Welcome to my room!"

Shoto at first just stood at the doorframe, taking in the massiveness of the furniture in the room. In the two weeks I've been living here, I'd added some gadgets I'd desperately wanted to own in my past life, like some videogames to play in my Ultra-Plain HD TV hanging on the wall next to the bathroom's door (childish ones, and I had restricted time to play 'because I was still too young'); the same happened with my computer resting at my desk, too high for me to reach without someone else's help (I'd insisted on having them stay there until I was old enough to reach it and used it on my own; sue me, I was a mentally full-grown man with nerdy needs!). The only things remotely infantile I had around were some kind of Scalextric's based cars, and I'd never used them.

' _Then again…_ ' I eyed my book-filled library with a frown. ' _Maybe I could entertain him with some books… Shoto did peg me as a nerdy guy who loves to read everything he could get his hands on… Or maybe even a movie._ '

"What do you want to do?" Tired of getting my head hurting because of indecision, I just let him decide with all the nonchalance of a five-year-old. Man, I was going to miss being able to speak as freely as this. "I have some cars, and books, and maybe we could watch a movie."

At first Shoto didn't answer, still stuck in the doorframe, eyeing the whole room with a look I just couldn't interpret. His brows were furrowed, looking at everywhere but me. I began shuffling my feet where I stood, worry beginning to fill me; just what was going through this guy's head? Even as a kid, he was a mystery to me.

"Uh, Shoto?" I called, and I couldn't help the concerned tone in my voice. It sounded kinda cute, and that gave me a cringe.

"–ke it."

"Huh?" I blinked. What did he say? He spoke too low for me to catch.

For some reason, he blushed and quickly entered the room and closed the door behind him. "Nothing."

"Uh, okay then." Man, I was _not_ looking forward to when he became a socially awkward person. If he was _this_ awkward as a kid, imagine when he grew up.

For a moment all we did was stand in the center of the room, two extremely uncomfortable kids (one with too much to worry about with his family, the other a grown-up man in the body of a kid that didn't remember how to behave like one _at all_ ) just looking at each other. We could very faintly hear our mothers talking outside (the walls were especially thick here, something I was grateful for) but couldn't make out the words.

I shifted my weight to one foot, uncomfortable, unconsciously ruffling my wings. That apparently attracted Shoto's attention, because his mismatched eyes looked up from my eyes to my wings.

"So… You can fly?" He finally asked.

I blinked. Of all the topics, I didn't think he'd be interested in _that_.

"Well, not yet." I finally smiled as I rubbed the back of my head. "Aquila-san, my teacher, he says I must first get stronger to actually fly."

"Hm…" He hummed, I didn't know if in interest or in a noncommital way. You never knew with this guy. "Can I… touch one?"

"Uh… Sure…"

I sat on the carpet-covered floor and extended one of my wings at Shoto, feeling a bit uncomfortable. The only one that ever touched my wings was Mom, so having anyone else do it felt a bit strange for my likings. Shoto sat down too, and scooted over closer before hesitantly hovering a hand close to my extended wing.

He was as nervous as I was. Both of us felt like this was something unnatural, or at least oddly intimate (not like _that_ , Jesus!) In fact, I was almost fighting to keep my wing extended… both because keeping it like this felt strangely vulnerable, and also because I was scared I'd pull a back muscle or a wing muscle if I held it for too long. Shoto's cool hand grazed the primary feathers, near the alula ones, and moved over to the marginal coverts as if caught in a daze. I repressed a shudder, because even if the feathers were there to protect my wings from the low temperatures, Shoto's unnaturally cold hand felt a bit too sharply for me. He apparently didn't notice, judging the fascinated look on his young face.

And it was then that I remembered. Todoroki Shoto was just a kid. It broke my heart to see a child who'd learned to suppress his natural curiosity because of the brutal mistreatment of his egotistical father. For a moment, I wondered if his nervousness before touching my wing had been because he'd feared I'd lash out at him.

"They're soft…" He mumbled almost to himself, but this time I could hear him.

That sent a smile across my face, feeling somewhat proud. I spent a lot of time preening my wings to get all the down and stray feathers that I wouldn't need out of the way, so that they'd look as pristine and soft as they were right now. Having Shoto admit it made me a bit giddy.

"I know right?" I grinned like a loon, almost puffing my chest out. "I spend a lot of time to make them look this good."

"They also feel strong." Shoto finally removed his hand, but by then both of us had left most of the awkwardness behind and were sitting close to each other, cross-legged and one knee almost touching the other's. "Why do you need even more strength?"

"Because I'm heavy. If I want to fly, I need to grow stronger. I didn't want to stop eating, so I chose to start being stronger."

"Oh. Cool."

I retracted my wing and smiled at my cousin. He seemed to doubt, but finally returned a small one.

I considered that a victory nevertheless.

We had a bit of a rocky start, but we finally settled with small chat about what we liked and disliked. A very basic conversation, that actually revealed more about the aloof boy that I'd known before in my previous life.

I learned that, as I supposed, he was a very studious boy by nature, an avid reader and lover of Japanese traditional ceremonies. He preferred staying indoors than going out to play. He adored his mother, as I already knew, and I was surprised to find out that he loved his siblings too. Not a word about his father, but it was somewhat expected. At such a young age, a kid was far more perceptive than many adults thought, and he knew Enji wasn't behaving like a father would.

I admitted to him my love for cooking and videogames. I was surprised to discover that he'd never tried playing videogames before, and I promised myself that, we were older, I'd teach him how to play. I surmised he'd need it, what with his future estrangement from his parents.

Soon after that, Yuki and Mom entered to find us in deep conversation, me boasting about videogames and Shoto listening with interest. They seemed happy and satisfied with our nascent friendship. I really was glad that we seemed to get along to be honest. Once you get past his tough exterior, Shoto could be a really good listener and a great person to speak with.

It was only after the two Todoroki members left the house that I let my smile drop into a concerned frown. She'd tried to hide it, but I'd noticed Yuki's red eyes and slightly puffy nose when she'd come to my room to collect her son, and the small crease on my mother's forehead whenever something worried her deeply. As I supposed, the sisters had taken advantage of us leaving the room to talk about her difficult situation (to say the least) with Enji and the brutal training Shoto had to go through.

So, it had begun. I was too late to protect Shoto from Endeavor and his 'training'. I was too late to help Yuki cope with it all.

My heart was torn. I didn't know how much time I had before Yuki finally snapped. I didn't even know just _how_ I was supposed to cure her mental illness, and just what triggered it in the first place.

"Enzeru."

My mother's voice, for the first time ever, spoke my full name instead of my favorite nickname. It was that, added with her serious expression, what convinced me that my mother intended to give a really important message to me.

So I gave her my full attention, turning to her as she knelt before me and put her hands on my tiny shoulders. Her blue eyes spoke volumes, a mixture of repressed anger, grief and deep worry, her mouth tight and serious. I could feel her fingers trembling as she grasped my shoulders, not too tight but not loose enough for me to slip away either.

For a long moment she just looked at me, examining my face as if searching for something… or trying to memorize my face as best she could. Her expression never wavered, but I _did_ notice her anger subduing a bit. I didn't know just what she saw in me, but it served to calm her temper a bit.

"You've always been smart." She began in a low voice, her harmonious voice sounding a bit distant to me. "Far smarter than you should be at your age, in fact. You perceive far more things than you should be capable of."

One of my wings twitched. I didn't notice it, too concentrated in not tensing up and still keeping my grey eyes fixed on my mother.

"I know this is selfish for me to ask." She bit her lower lip and turned her gaze to the floor beneath our feet. I didn't like seeing her like this, but soon she was looking back at me with a determination that nearly threw me off. "But I want you to help Shoto-kun in whatever way you're capable of. Stay by his side. Alright, my boy?"

It wasn't quite an order, but the strength in her voice and eyes certainly made that request feel like one. For a moment all I could do was look back at her, trying to gather my suddenly strayed thoughts and form a proper answer, whichever came to mind that felt appropriate.

But then _something_ ignited inside me. All my previous thoughts about what Endeavor was making his wife and son go through, and the feelings that came with them. Rage filled me again, but this time a familiar fire came along; the will of making things _right_.

I was just a boy. A winged boy with diamond covering half his body, but a boy nonetheless. I could do next to nothing against someone like Todoroki Enji, #2 Pro Hero in the world. I couldn't stop him from hitting his wife and out-right physically abusing his child into fulfilling his selfish and a bit twisted desires.

But I could stop Shoto from falling into the endless pit of hatred towards his father. I could help ease the guilt he'd feel for his mother's internship in the mental hospital. I could stay by his side in whatever way he needed.

I could be his **_family_** …

Yes. I could do that. It could mean nothing in the future, but if it changed something, then I'd be satisfied.

"Okay, Mom." I nodded with all the seriousness my young face could muster. "I'll stay with him."

And Mom smiled, pure relief seeping out of that simple gesture. She then pulled me towards her and embraced me tightly, arms going under my wings to avoid that sensitive joint between shoulder blades and wings. I returned the hug just as tightly, as if sealing the promise we just made.

* * *

Four years came by and went in a blink for me. In that time I made good friends with Gurakumi and Matsuoka, and convinced Shoto of joining us instead of 'brooding on his own' in the corner of the class. We quickly became an inseparable bunch of kids, well-behaved in class and almost all of us managing to get to the top of the class; we'd have that silly competition of who'd become the next #1 student in class. Matsuoka would merely settle with passing the tests, but he'd have as much fun as any of us in making those bets.

After school I'd spend my time with the three of them all around town, or merely with Shoto at home. He never invited me to spend time at his house, and I never asked him to. I made a silent point of never talking about his father or his Quirk, though sometimes I'd catch his gaze whenever I brought up someone else's Quirk, like my Mom's.

When we were seven, Shoto stopped coming to school for three whole days. Toriumi would explain that he'd had an accident at home, and I knew that was only partially true. I felt sick to the stomach during those three days, worried about him and wondering just what I could have done to avoid that from happening. When he finally returned, I noticed with heart-clenching guilt that he only looked the shadow he'd been, half his face showing that horrendous scar that would mark him and accompany him for the rest of his life, and mismatched eyes showing unsuppressed hatred whenever anyone even mentioned Endeavor's name. It costed Gurakumi, Matsuoka and I months before he returned to our little gang.

But he never returned to be the way he'd been before. Ever again.

Todoroki Yuki also stopped coming by our house. No one explained me why, but I already knew. I also heard Mom softly cry in her room at night for a whole week. It hurt, both her cries and the difficult situation both Shoto and Yuki had to go through because of Endeavor. And once more, I felt my guilt grow at my inaction in that situation. Mom made a habit of visiting her sister at least once a week, and would spend hours talking to her. I tried to accompany her, but she insisted that it wasn't a proper environment for me; I had the feeling she was just worried of how I would react to see the poor woman, sitting alone in a small room overlooking the world through her window.

The atmosphere at home became a bit more serious than usual from then on. Even more whenever I brought Shoto home. Sure everyone would behave properly, but no one could pretend nothing had happened whenever Shoto's dull eyes glanced over at us. Not accusing, of course, but uninterested, as if he were wondering why we bothered taking care of him.

Gurakumi and Matsuoka became Shoto's good friends, while I became practically his _shadow_. I refused to leave him alone when he was so obviously hurting, both because of the increasingly brutal training and the guilt that threatened to overwhelm him whenever he thought of his mother. Most of the time I just babbled about whatever, desperate to keep his thoughts occupied with something that wasn't his mother or his father; but there were moments I just couldn't find a way to break the oppressive silence, the both of us silently watching All Might's videos or playing videogames.

I wanted to think those moments served to ease some of Shoto's pain.

It was when we were ten when I finally got the best news of my life.

Summer break had just turned around. My exams had gone quite well (this time Shoto became #1) and I just received wonderful news from Aquila just the day before. I immediately called in Matsuoka, Gurakumi and Shoto and asked them to meet me where Aquila had told me to go, excitement evident in my voice. Even Mom couldn't keep me still as she tried to get me to eat my breakfast before going.

I ran as fast as I could, avoiding the early risers in my eagerness to reach the rendezvous point. I couldn't help but laugh aloud sometimes, earing bemused looks from the people around me, but I didn't care.

Only Shoto was waiting for me in the solitary park near the bridge. He'd always been the one who always got first at the places where we'd hung out.

"Shoto!" I called to him.

He nonchalantly turned and saw me just as I stopped beside him, trying to catch my breath. Once I got that covered, I breathed in deeply before beaming at him, my feet unable to stay still.

"You look happy." He remarked dully, an unimpressed expression on his face.

"Heheh, I am!" I snickered with my hands behind my head. "You'll soon see why!"

He shrugged and waited with me for the other two slowpokes to arrive. They did come just two minutes before the appointed hour, but I still couldn't help but rant them because of their lateness. Gurakumi didn't seem to mind, and Matsuoka just looked slightly miffed at my evident enthusiasm coating my half-hearted rant.

"Then?" Gurakumi lifted his glasses with his forefinger, grabbing his notebook in his other hand tightly. "Why are we here, Enzeru-kun?"

My smile couldn't grow any bigger. I swear it looked even wider than All Might's right now. Obviously confused and interested in the cause of my happiness, the three of them looked over at me.

"I'm finally learning how to fly!" I exclaimed, pumping my fists to the sky in triumph.

At that, I got different reactions from everyone as always. Matsuoka's eyes widened as an equally excited smile crossed his face; Gurakumi's lenses shone as he hummed; Shoto lifted an eyebrow, the only thing that denoted his interest in all this.

"Really?" Matsuoka slung an arm around my shoulders. "Congrats, man!"

"Heheh, thanks!"

"So Aquila-san told you your muscles are ready for the strain?" Gurakumi asked.

"He said he believed so!" I nodded. "Today we'll find out actually."

Shoto crossed his arms over his chest. "And why are we here?"

At that, my excitement subdued a bit, my smile turning a bit sheepish. I rubbed the back of my head in embarrasment. "To be honest, I'm a bit scared. I wanted you all to be with me today. I'm sorry if I troubled you..."

And I _was_ scared. I had no idea how Aquila pretended to know if I could fly or not, but all the videos I watched of birds and ornithology in general showed me that mothers usually pushed their baby birds out of the nest for them to learn to fly. It seemed a bit extreme to me, and I was incredibly nervous that Aquila would just tell me to jump off the bridge and fly just like that.

Matsuoka punched me lightly in the arm, ignoring the diamond underneath the cloth. "Don't be an idiot!"

"He's right." Gurakumi lifted his glasses again. "We're happy to help you. And we're on summer vacations, so we didn't have to interrupt our studies or anything."

"Are you sure?" I frowned in concern. "You told me your father hasn't been feeling well lately..."

But he brushed off my concern with a wave of his hand. "Meh, he's simply being a bit melodramatic. My sister's taking care of him right now."

Shoto said nothing, as always, but I knew he preferred to stay away from his home right now.

The sound of flapping wings called our attention to the skies, where we saw Aquila slowly descending next to us and taking ground. He'd lately looked a bit more tired and stressed than usual, probably the signal of so many villains appearing. It was evident by the bags under his eyes that he'd caught little to no sleep in the past weeks.

"Good morning, Aquila-san!" I greeted him, quelching the nervousness in my stomach.

"Hoseki-kun, good morning." He nodded at me with his always-present stony face. He turned to my friends and cousin. "Todoroki-kun, Gurakumi-kun, Matsuoka-kun. Good morning to you too. Did you come to support Hoseki-kun?"

"Morning, Aquila!" Matsuoka waved with a giant smile. "Yep we did! He called us here."

Aquila clicked his tongue as he looked between the four of us. "Well, it's not like this is a private reunion. Alright then, you three can stay. Now, Hoseki-kun," he turned to me with a tone of finality, "are you ready for this? We can always leave this for later on, get some more muscle to your body and wings."

I bit my lower lip. If he asked me like that, then _of course_ I'd want to wait a bit longer and grow even stronger. You can never be careful enough with something as delicate as flying, Aquila would say. It was far better to wait as long as you could before attempting to throw yourself over the edge... almost literally in this case.

But...

"I don't want to wait any longer." I lifted my head and looked at Aquila's eagle eyes, my own shining with determination. "I've been waiting to fly for far too long. If I don't learn now, then I'll never gather the courage to try it."

He looked down at me for a _long_ moment before giving out a tiring sigh. That offended me a little; did he expect me to surrender and wait a bit longer?

"Alright then, have it your way. I hope you're ready, because after this your muscles will ache so much you won't be able to move properly for about the rest of the day."

I... admit I swallowed heavily at that not-so-subtle threat. I should be really used to this, I really should, but this time I knew Aquila wasn't bluffing. The ache that I felt in my early years when trying to open my wings would be _nothing_ in comparison with actually trying to fly. That, if I didn't break my neck in the process.

Much to my chagrin, Aquila guided me up to the bridge and made me stand on the edge. I looked down, at the five or so meters before my sight met water running under the bridge.

"Remember what I told you, Hoseki-kun." Aquila said in a low voice to me, attracting my attention and momentarily making me forget my nervousness about this. "Trust in your instincts. Let your wings carry you."

' _That's easier said than done_...' I wanted to quip, but my voice wouldn't come out. Did I develop my muscles enough for this task? Did I have those instincts Aquila assured me I would have?

"Do you want me to push you?"

At the man's question, I quickly shook my head. I wanted to do this. I just needed to gather my courage and remember how much I wanted to learn how to fly. I just couldn't chicken now... Yes, that's right, ebb away little nervousness... Thank God no one was in my head beside myself, else they'd think I was crazy...

Aquila saw me prepare myself and just waited for me to make my mind.

I looked down at the water, many feet below me. I could faintly make out Shoto, Gurakumi and Matsuoka looking our way from the park. I breathed in deeply, then exhaled with a gush. My tense body relaxed almost completely, save from my shoulders and my wings. Wind picked up at my back, ruffling my hair, clothes and the outer feathers of my wings. Every noise quietened, except from the thundering beatings of my heart stammering in my chest almost rhythmically.

My body tilted forwards.

I fell.

* * *

 **A/N: To all those who don't know me: I'm a person who's terribly addicted to cliffhangers. Should I say sorry? Maybe, but I would be lying xD**

 **This is slightly longer than the past chapters, but it's nowhere near my full capabilities. I promise I'll work even harder to make the chapters longer.**

 **I jumped a lot of years in this chapter, and I'm aware of that, but I'm honestly eager to start with the proper plot already! There will be still at least two more chapters before the plot runs around though.**

 **-Hawkright-01121999: Thank you so much Hawkright! Sorry, I'll make him an asshole through and through. Shoto didn't peg me as someone who would hang out with friends at his own house, so it didn't make sense for me to change him. Also, he's only a kid, regardless of his connections. I made this chapter specifically to ensure that everyone understood that, despite his newfound life, there are things that are simply beyond his reach. I'm not saying that no one did anything to make Yuki and Shoto's situation better of course; it's just that Enzeru couldn't do anything.**

 **-SandSasori (from chapter 2): ... I'm sorry to hear that. But why bother to even leave a comment about that? You don't like it, then leave.**

 **-In Brightest Day: Glad to see you liked it ^^! Honestly, this chapter has been slightly more difficult to write down.**

 **-Nemforellik: HI! Hey, I'm sorry for suddenly deleting the other fic, but I just couldn't write anymore... Aw, you make me blush~! I hope to live up to your expectations then. At first I didn't plan to make anyone from the main plot to be his cousin, but when I realized I made Koe (Enzeru's mother) awfully familiar to Todoroki's, then the idea came to my mind. And I'm glad I did so! I think it worked out pretty well.**

 **Well, see you guys next chapter!**


	5. Chapter 5

**CHAPTER** **5**

 **A/N: Thanks to those who fav/followed my fic, and all anonymous readers!**

 **Disclaimer: My Hero Academia belongs to the fabulous author Kohei Horikoshi. I only own a couple OCs.**

* * *

I didn't plummet to my death.

As Aquila had promised, as soon as my feet left the railing and I let my body at gravity's mercy, instincts I didn't know I possessed kicked with the force of a truck. Still, I couldn't keep my eyes open (both because of the wind whipping at my face and also because of my _terror_ ) when my wings reacted on pure instinct and snapped open. That drove a particularly nasty pang down my back, but I could hold on more or less well.

I was sure I looked like a drunken duck however.

My wings flapped strongly once, twice, the howling wind slowing to a gentle breeze that would help me stay hovering. Only with my body fully stabilized mid-air did I dare open my eyes.

It was... an undescribable sensation. My feet hovered only centimeters from the river surface, rings rippling through the water with each powerful flap of my wings, my reflection blurring with each ring. My whole body, not only my wings, adjusted easily to the gentle wind pushing and pulling at it.

I couldn't help the wide smile on my face.

"That's awesome, Enzeru!" I heard from the shore.

Gurakumi, Matsuoka and Shoto were all watching me from the shore, Aquila having descended to their side. They were all watching me with varying expressions, such as surprise and admiration. But the Pro Hero had, apart from all that, an unmistakable glint of pride on his avian eyes that just stretched my smile even more. A happy bubble began emerging on my chest, coming out with a boisterously loud laugh.

I was flying. I. Was. _Flying!_

I gathered all the strength I could to impulse myself upwards, the wings a bit strained but managing to bring my body up as commanded. My fears forgotten, it felt as natural as breathing for me.

And then I knew I'd _never_ forget the sensation.

I experimented a bit with my airborn abilities, how wind affected my flight, and how to fly in the desired direction. Aquila came to my side and directed me most of the way, recommending me not to try the most complicated maneuvers (such as loopings or vertical take-off) which actually required even _more muscle_ in my wings and body. He also advised against flying above a certain height or speed, informing me that I first needed to start slow. It bummed me that I _still_ had to go with baby steps after achieving so much, but Aquila warned me that going beyond what my body was capable of could end in me crippling myself irreparably.

Still, he was genuinely impressed when I managed to stay airborne a total of an _hour_ before my muscles screamed _enough_. I'd been so giddy with flying that I'd ignored my body's warnings until it gave out completely, Aquila having to catch me before I plummeted down into the river.

Once on the shore, my friends and cousin surrounded me and congratulated me for my achievements. They'd been as excited as I'd felt when I managed to stop my descent and began hovering above the water, though Matsuoka shamelessly admitted that he'd been worried for a second that I couldn't open my wings in time. _That_ would've sucked a lot.

Aquila left shortly after promising me that he'd begin training me here in the riverpark, and warned me to grow even stronger to face his classes. He complimented me however, for managing to stay in the air for a whole hour.

To celebrate my first flight lesson, the four of us went to Musutafu City's shopping street, the fanciest one, simply taking a stroll while chatting lively about whatever came to mind. We got separated a moment when Matsuoka and Gurakumi said they needed to buy some things, and Shoto and I distracted ourselves with our favorite electronics shop, me pointing out some of the most expensive videoconsoles I'd ever seen. Shoto followed me around soundlessly as always, but I noticed a certain gleam in his eye that worried me. Our friends came back before I got to say anything though.

We stopped at lunch at Matsuoka's family restaurant, who got us the best ramen I'd ever tasted in my life. The place felt homey and the delicious smell attracted a lot of people, so we actually had to push our way past the customers for us to get a seat at a table. Matsuoka's Mom gladly served us her specialty, pork ramen with her special mixture, that got us all drooling (even always-composed Shoto, though he'd never admit it). She had to make several helpings before we were satisfied; I was practically _famished_ because of the surprising workout that my body took from flying around.

It was when we were drinking our tea after all the ramen we've eaten that I suddenly paid attention to the hanging TV, a familiar smiley face showing.

"Hey, look!" A customer yelled drunkenly, pointing at the TV as he attracted everyone's attention. "News about All Might!"

"Higher volume, please!" Another requested, this voice much sober than the first one.

As Matsuoka's Dad quickly complied with a laugh, Gurakumi frowned as he adjusted his glasses onthe bridge of his nose. "Huh, I didn't know there was a danger where All Might would be needed..."

I kept silent, my grey eyes set on the TV displaying a grinning All Might holding an unconscious woman securely under his arm and a boy held securely against his chest with the other. Rubble and dust blocked further view of what had happened, but the pretty journalist explained that there had been a gas accident in a house and All Might had been close enough to get the woman and boy out before the building collapsed on top of them.

The people in the restaurant, including Gurakumi, Matsuoka and the latter's family, cheered and applauded Alll Might's timely rescue with admiration and relief evident in their faces. Shoto had that shine in his eyes that always showed up whenever his favorite hero appeared.

I... just kept watching, trying to find inconsistencies in the giant Pro Hero's form. A minuscule stumble, a suppressed shudder, a drop of blood that just _shouldn't_ be there. Maybe a rictus in that permanent smile of his, a desperate undertone to it that showed the sheer _terror_ behind the (perhaps a bit forced) cheerfulness.

I'd been doing that routine since a few weeks ago, having just remembered that the time for All Might to fight All for One was inevitably close; that, if it hadn't occurred already. Whenever the Symbol of Peace showed up in the news (which was _at least_ twice a day, and that's in a good day), I'd scan his body and overall demeanor, _drearing_ to find that small sign that showed his time as the #1 Pro Hero had just begun counting down. My stomach felt sick during the news until they ended with no apparent change in the giant man.

Not this time, however.

It was really a minuscule thing, something that _no one_ but those that already knew what transpired or knew the man on a personal level could've caught on in a glimpse. As All Might set the woman and the boy delicately on the ground (some bystanders even being so kind as to approach them and enveloped them with thick blankets, despite it being hot as hell), I distinguished a brilliant drop of a deep crimson color slipping through his lips, and a small rictus on his smile as he nonchalantly stood to his impressive size and wiped it as if wiping some of the dust and sweat on his face.

My stomach dropped down to my feet unstoppable, unable to tear my eyes off that apparently innocent gesture. I could almost _hear_ the damn imaginary clock ticking down with the inexorable strength that time represented. I knew, even if his costume hid it pretty well, that bandages wrapped around his torso as if he were a mummy. I knew what All Might knew about his collapsed lung, and the limited time he had to use One for All and perform his heroics deed before he returned back to his weak, pathetic form. In the blink of an eye, and in the timespan of a _single battle_ , he'd turn from being the unshakable pillar for peace for Japan (hell, even the whole-freaking- _world_ ) to a Pro Hero that could only have occasional bursts of power to help people. It broke my heart in a thousand shattered pieces, filling me with a sympathy I didn't know I could feel for someone else apart from my newfound family here. Sure, I'd known about the events thanks to the anime and manga back at my former life, but _that_ had been completely different, like when I met Midoriya and Shoto in the flesh instead of through a screen or a black-and-white drawing.

This time, I felt like I genuinely _knew_ the man behind the eternal smile.

And yet, even knowing the future events, even knowing what he'd have to go through before and _after_ he lost his power, my admiration towards All Might, towards _Toshinori Yagi_ , knew then no bounds. Because as the ignorant people only knew the Pro Hero for his strength and how cool he looked whenever he came to the rescue of innocents and beat the crap outta villains... I just found his strength of will and self-sacrifice even _more_ inspiring that all those petty details. Yes, All Might was strong and courageous; but everyone could become those, in time.

Yet All Might always put other people's safety before his own. Even knowing that his time as a Pro Hero was ticking down to an unavoidable end, he just. Kept. _Going_. Always smiling, always inspiring the people around him, including the future heroes. Like Midoriya. Like Shoto.

Maybe, even like _me_.

I didn't kid myself though. I knew I'd _never_ become as selfless as All Might was. But I knew it wouldn't hurt to at least _try_ to become a worthy Pro Hero.

' _To protect those I hold dear_.' I thought, an image of Mom, the butlers and Shoto and his mother appearing in a flash on my mind. ' _To never lose anyone ever again._ '

"Haaaaaah!?"

Matsuoka's loud yell brought me to reality, the indignant undertone surprising me. I looked around to see most of the people either confused or disappointed, all still watching the TV. No one had noticed me spacing out, _good_.

"He left without letting the press ask a few questions?" Gurakumi frowned while adjusting his glasses again. "Well that's odd. He always stays to at least give an inspirational speech to everyone."

One of the customers, a kind-looking old man heard him and turned to talk with him with a kind smile on his crinkly face. "Oh don't you worry kid. He's All Might, the #1 Pro Hero in the world. I'm sure he has other emergencies to attend to."

"Yeah, he's completely right!" Matsuoka's dad cheerfully declared as he set down our desserts. "Being famous _and_ reliable is not easy for a Pro Hero as inspirational and hardworking as All Might! It must be difficult for him having free time enough to answer questions."

Gurakumi's face scrunched up with a funny expression, but relented to the elders' opinion with a sigh. "I guess you're right... I must be worrying over nothing then."

And just like that, the TV was turned off and chatter filled the small, cozy restaurant again. It amazed me how much trust the common people put in All Might (hard-earned, I knew it) so as to dismiss his sudden departures with not so much as a half-hearted explanation and a wave of a hand. While the others (including Shoto, who seemed a bit more lively after watching his favorite Hero on TV) chatted about this or that other thing, I shrunk back in my chair with an inward sigh.

The weight of the world wasn't as heavy as the load that now rested on my shoulders. Only I knew about All Might's true pain.

' _Could I have stopped his fight with All for One?_ ' I asked myself for the upteenth time. ' _Should I? Would I risk the more than possible ripples in time it would've caused in the future because of that change? Maybe One for All is not the only Quirk that can be transferrable to another person... Maybe I'm thinking about this stuff too much? I don't know..._ '

"Hey, Earth to Enzeru!" Matsuoka called me, smiling like a loon when he slapped a hand on my shoulder closer to him. "We're going! I already paid the bill, so let's get going!"

"Uh... Wait, _you_ paid the bill?" I threw an incredulous look at Gurakumi and Shoto, who could only shrug in their surprise.

"Uh, duh?" Matsuoka seemed offended at his friends' skepticism of his generosity. "This is _your_ day after all, and this is _my family's restaurant_ after all too."

Gurakumi suddenly cleared his throat as the bull-boy began rising from his chair. "A- _hem_! Aren't you forgetting something?"

"Huh? _Oh!_ "

"Forgetting what?" Shoto couldn't help but ask as he'd risen from his own seat too, frowning when Gurakumi and Matsuoka produced a bag from... I didn't even _notice_ whereit'd been the whole time. I was distracted by my friends, then the food, _then_ All Might's appearance on TV... Too many things.

... Was I developing ADD? Please God no.

A dark-green shopping bag was suddenly thrust into my line of vision, startling me. It wasn't big or heavy, just a bit lofty- which made me wonder just _what_ was inside. At first I thought it was another rare ornithology book Gurakumi or Matsuoka had managed to get, but when I revealed the military-patterned box inside the bag. My eyebrow lifted in confusion as I noticed a name on its top.

"Doesn't this shop sell military stuff?" I asked, tilting my head and rising my gaze to my friends.

Matsuoka was (unsurprisingly enough) jittering in place with an excited smile, while Gurakumi had blushed a bit while avoiding my piercing glare. Shoto was observing the box as confused as I was, so this was the previous two's plan.

"Ee- _yup_!" Matsuoka sang with a pleasant voice, rubbing his hands. "Costed us quite a fortune–!"

"You're not supposed to say that kind of stuff when you're giving a present, dumbass..." Gurakumi grumbled, but that didn't dissuade the bull-boy from continuing as if nothing happened:

"–but we know you'll love it! Or at least..." He scratched his nose with a nervous smile. "We know you'll use it a lot."

Unable to contain my curiosity, I wrenched open the box... and stared at the thing innocently resting inside.

And stared.

And _stared_ some more.

The silence set my friends a bit on edge, as I continued to glare at the object with my face carefully neutral.

"Uh... Enzeru-kun?" Gurakumi gave the leap of faith, a hand reaching to touch my shoulder...

... before he noticed the _sloooooooowly_ forming giant smile on my face. My eyes shone, both in excitement and no little amount of gratefulness at this touching gesture. Shaky hands took the object and gingerly took it from the box, the smile growing even wider if possible.

It was a pair of military aviator goggles. The leather were sturdy, painted with black, white and green camo patterns, the pristine lenses tainted with dark-green, thick and mindful of the eyes. Retractable bands to adjust how tight I wanted the goggles on my head.

They were _perfect_. And they were _mine_.

"If we had known about this sooner, we could've gotten even better ones." Matsuoka lamented, not noticing my pleased expression. "We wanted this to be a surprise, but–"

I cut him off when I dragged both him and Gurakumi on a big hug. I wasn't one of openly expressive kind of dude, but I was a _kid_. And I was just given one of the most thoughtful presents from the best friends I could've asked for. Awkwardness and shame be God-fucking- _damned_ , this had to be properly thanked! Shoto just smiled at my open show of affection that I rarely showed–except when we were joking around, when I was more proclive to give half-hugs.

"This is awesome!" I broke the hug from my incredibly red-faced friends and directed them a giant smile. "Thanks guys!"

And with that said, I put the goggles on, admiring the way I had non-obstructive view of what was below, above and at my sides. The crystal was clear and even gave me a bit more of focus, and the instructions even said that they were waterproof, so that the rain didn't obstruct my view. The box came with extra straps in case I broke the one I had, and cleaning tools for the lenses, including a spare pair of lenses.

In the end I settled with wearing the goggles around my neck, ready to be used at a moment's notice. I still gushed at the unexpected present and treated it with all the care in the world (it was one-of-a-kind's present, _sue me_!) while my friends and cousin could only smile in amusement at my obvious excitement. The fact that they'd taken the time to think about me... It warmed my heart.

Soon it was time for us to go back to our respective homes. Gurakumi and Matsuoka, who lived practically house-to-house, were the first in leaving, and I thanked them again for the incredibly thoughtful present once more. They only smiled and brushed off my thanks, but I could feel they felt good with my gratefulness... though still a bit awkward at how I expressed it.

Shoto and I continued walking in silence for a few more streets. I lived fairly apart from him unfortunately, so I couldn't accompany him to his house before I stopped at my street, but at least we got to give each other company for a few more blocks. I hummed in happiness, wings slightly flapping (they felt like I had cramped muscles, but I was _so excited_ I pointedly ignored the twinges) and bag carrying the rest of the stuff swinging with my arm's movement. My new goggles bounced up-and-down my collarbone.

"You look happy." Shoto commented in a monotone voice... His usual voice.

My cheerfulness dimmed a little, but I still couldn't help the smile as I turned towards my cousin. "Well, I got to have my first _succesful_ flight lesson, my friends gave me an incredible gift, _and_ I got to spend time with my family." That input referring him had his face blushing a bit. "I have a lot to be grateful about."

He smiled, and then quickly felt silent again. Our walks always went like this, with me usually babbling my ass about something while he listened- or ignored me more likely.

But this time, I noticed something... _different_ about him. He seemed even quieter than usual, his expression a bit more down, his steps a bit more subdued. I frowned, wondering if Enji's brutal training had begun taking a toll on him... I wanted to talk, I wanted to take that pain away. But I couldn't, because Shoto just wouldn't open up to me _that much_. He accepted my presence, thanked me my attempts at cheering him up and making his day a bit lighter after the hell he had to go through... but nothing more. He left the rest behind lock-and-key.

It frustrated me greatly, knowing I could do nothing but avoid the topic both knew he needed to talk about.

That was why, when Shoto breathed deeply and turned to me to speak, that I put my whole attention on him. Maybe this was finally it, maybe he was going to plead for help. God knew I had the monetary resources to help him- if only he just admitted what Enji did to him...

"Look, I..."

 ** _Biip biip biip!_**

–but my mobile phone suddenly broke through his voice. And the moment was lost just like that.

Groaning, cursing whatever Fate that chose to keep the God- _damn_ plot in line, I flipped the phone open (yes, I had one of those vintage ones: I loved them!) and Mom's voice came through it. She quickly asked me to get some things on the closest store before they closed, and hung up without giving me time to refuse. With a sigh, I saved the phone and gave my cousin an apologetic look.

"Sorry cuz." I smiled weakly, as I noticed Shoto quickly retreating behind his cold exterior with a sadness that weighed in my heart. "Seems Mom needs some things from the store. I'll catch ya later, okay?"

He seemed to hesitate, before he relented with a sigh and a nod. "... Yeah. Okay."

I tried to cheer him up. "C'mon dude, cheer up! There's still the rest of the summer vacations to talk. I'll see you soon, yeah?"

At first I thought Shoto wouldn't answer positively, considering the complicated look he got on his face. I swear my heart stammered the longer he didn't respond.

Finally, he settled with a calming smile- not big, not exactly transmitting a lot of emotion, but a _smile_ nonetheless.

"Yeah." His voice came out stronger, less doubtful. "I'll see you soon."

I knew I just calmed the beast for a little longer. Still, I clapped his shoulder with forced cheeriness and got on my way, waving my hand in goodbye. He returned the gesture until I turned the next corner.

I hated being unable to do anything about a situation I knew was disastrous for someone else. First All Might, now Shoto. I wasn't naïve, I knew something was wrong with my cousin- worse than usual I mean. But if he didn't say anything, I couldn't help him; I wasn't supposed anything about his situation anyways- and giving the excuse of Mom telling me everything wasn't either believable or true. I could bluff my way through certain situations, but in serious cases, I knew being truthful worked far better than whatever colorful lie my mind could create.

And could lead to far more difficult situations if discovered.

I sighed as I entered the almost-empty store. Outside, the sun was beginning to set (we'd spent a lot of time just hanging about) and the people had begun retiring to their homes. Only a handful of customers remained on the small shop, which brightened my mood a little- I could buy the things needed and get home faster if there weren't that many customers around.

I sorted through the store quickly, taking the things (a bag of fresh apples, bleach and almond milk) Mom asked me to get, still running my head around All Might and Shoto's situations. Guilt still overwhelmed me, and not even the most logical explanations would quench them down. It frustrated me.

The kind clerk, who was talking to an elderly woman, smiled at me as she went through my things and putting them in plastic bags.

"... All Might is truly an admirable person." The elderly woman continued speaking as if I wasn't there at all. "We're lucky that he's always there when a problem arises."

The clerk kind of got dreamy eyes then. "You're totally right, Ma'am! Oh I wish I could meet him in person!" And sighed in transpiration.

I would've gagged at that, but I kind of also wanted to meet him, so I did nothing but smile too. The woman seemed to have my same thoughts, as she chuckled half-naturely. The only other customer, a tall skinny guy, then approached us, with bottles of milk and his free hand scratching his blond head with... hanging... bangs...

' _It's fine now! Why? Because I AM HERE!'_

 **BA _-DUM!_**

My heart beat violently in my chest, and I could barely hide the raw astonishment that filled me and struggled to show in my face. His impressive 7' something made me a fucking _midget_ in comparison- and even at my age, I was a full- _freaking_ _5' 7_ already! My wingspan doubled that, so I wasn't small in normal standards... But this freaking guy managed to tower over me even without his impressive muscled complexion! It was strange trying to sort out his eyes from under the shadows that formed his eyebrows, as it only showed the brilliant blue orbs amidst the darkness, and the baggy shirt and pants he wore seemed like grain sacks for him.

"Oh dear, are you feeling unwell?" The elderly woman called out to me in concern, touching my arm. "You look rather pale."

Uh... Apparently I needed more training to restrain my emotions from showing in my face. I shook my head forcefully and smiled at the kind old woman. The towering man had looked in my direction too, apparently worried about my well-being too, but had refrained from saying anything when the elder spoke up to me.

"I'm alright, Ma'am." I bowed slightly. "I'm sorry for concerning you."

"My, what an educated young'un!" She smiled, pleased and relieved that I was alright. "I wish more of your age would be as well-educated as you!"

I laughed and rubbed the back of my head, blushing a bit. Inwardly thanking the woman for taking me out of my stupor, I paid for the things and took the plastic bag.

"He's really admirable, right, boy?" The kind clerk commented to me, dreamy eyes mode still disturbingly on as she began paying for freaking **Yagi Toshinori** 's things not even a foot away from her. "All Might, I mean."

"Always saving people with a brilliant smile on his face, always defeating villains and making our lives safer." The old woman nodded. "If I were twenty years younger I'd marry him."

I observed with hidden amusement how Toshinori began sweating, and settled with drawing a certain smile on my face; the usual smile I'd give to other people, one that Gurakumi once described as 'mysterious'.

"I admire him, yes. But sometimes the brightest smiles hide great pains." I pointedly remarked. The women and Toshinori looked at me, the two former with evident confusion and the latter with a glint of... something, in his blue eyes. "I admire him, but not because of the number or rescues he achieved or the number of villains he sent to jail... But because he's so selfless that he puts other people before himself. Even if he's having a bad day, he'll always have a smile for other people's sake." My smile turned a bit sour as I looked at the side, remembering the selfish acts in my past life that costed me my family and friends. "I... I aspire to be someone as awesome as him."

A long silence ensued afterwards. Snapping out of my depressing thoughts, I looked up to see the two women smiling with a hint of admiration, and Toshinori drawing a... Uh, I don't know how to interpret _that_ face...

"O-oh, sorry for my rambling!" I bowed again this time a bit more hurriedly. "I'm never one to ramble like this normally..."

"Don't you worry about it, young'un!" The old woman laughed tersely, waving my concerns away. "It warms my heart that there are children like you around. I hope you become a great Pro Hero like All Might then, if that is your goal."

"Good luck!" Nodding, the clerk gave me an encouraging smile.

I returned the gesture as thank you before stepping out of the store.

My feet slowly dragged me out of the store and I stopped just around the corner, where they didn't see me, head down in deep thought. What were the odds of finding Toshinori Yagi here of all places? Granted I didn't know where he lived, but I assumed it was away from the richest parts of the city. Either I assumed wrong, or he _really_ lived far away and liked to take long strolls. I didn't know the man enough unfortunately, so both theories were likely to be true.

In the end, it wouldn't matter.

I bit my lower lip. Had I been too reckless in admitting all that before him? I'd wanted to let him know that, regardless of his Quirk (and future lack thereof) he'd always be a Hero in my eyes, a true Symbol of Peace to guide future heroes and commonfolk. I wasn't the best at giving inspirational speeches, but I was of the opinion of the importance of pouring your heart into one to make it completely effective, rather than constantly watching out to use the correct words in every situation. It could become... bothersome, as well as always falling short to giving the full sentiment of what you try to say.

... Man I needed a break. Or a cold drink. Not beverage though- underage, and I hate it.

It was then that I noticed the lack of weight in my hand. The shopping bag was still inside the store! I turned to run back to the store-

"Oh, there you are!"

-before a familiar bag thrust into my face and an equally familiar voice stopped me in my tracks. My wings flapped a little because of the impulse of my movement, and still Toshinori held a hand out to stabilize me.

"Whoa there!" He exclaimed, steadying me while holding my bag and his in a single hand. "Are you alright?"

"I-I'm sorry sir!" I stepped back and bowed. "I didn't notice you before."

"Nah, don't worry about it." He waved my apology away. "It's also my fault for not saying anything until I was just behind you. Also, don't call me 'sir'." He groaned. "Makes me feel old."

"Okay... But what should I call you then?"

His hand dropped on my white hair and ruffled a bit. "Just call me Toshi. Here." He extended my bag to me. "Your bag."

"Thank you, Toshi-san." I smiled, taking the bag off his hand.

"What you said back there..." Drawn by the doubt in his voice, I glanced up at Toshinori. He had such a conflicted look on his face that I instantly frowned. "It's... a good thing you said. And... very profound."

Blushing again, I brushed the back of my head as I smiled gingerly. "I just said what I really thought about All Might. Quirks don't make Heroes. And that's why All Might is so loved and admired; because it's not his Quirk, but his smile and his selfless nature that give hope to humanity."

And Toshinori Yagi could only stare at me with those black-and-blue eyes, dumbfounded, positively _muted_. I'd had a bit of inspiration and had managed to say everything I wanted to say, though I admit that at some point I wanted to _gag_ at how cliché I sounded. 'Selfless nature that give hope to humanity'? _Please_. I could become a second Tsuyu and begin saying everything bluntly, but my mother and the elders didn't educate me that way. They preferred me to be 'suave' (read, _corny_ ) than to be blunt and positively harm someone's feelings.

Then Toshinori drew a smile that spoke of his happiness and humble thanks. His hand dropped again on my head, running his fingers through my white locks.

"You're a good kid. Take care of yourself, and become the man you want to be."

"Yeah!" I nodded with a giant smile on my own, beginning to run home while waving at him. "See ya, Toshi-san!"

He seemed to chuckle as he returned the wave until I disappeared among the streets.

* * *

At home, I had to contain my giddy feelings as I handed the objects Mom requested me to Akira. He only raised an eyebrow at the feelings I exhuded, but remained quiet with a smile nonetheless. Mom was in the living room, her fingers dancing on the new piano's keys as she smiled at me in greeting. I returned the smile, seating in the couch and listening to her music.

"Mom..." I finally said after a while.

"Yes, En-kun?"

My gaze shifted up to the ceiling, thoughts of Shoto and All Might feeling my mind. The feelings that filled me whenever I thought of either of their situations.

Helplessness. Guilt. Determination.

"I want to become a Pro Hero."

* * *

 **A/N: Yes. There I finish the chapter. According to my estimation, there's only a chapter left before we formally enter the My Hero Academia plot. Finally!**

 **-In Brightest Day: Yep. To be honest that's a bit what happens to me. I always loved birds and the thought of flying, but freefalling and planes are scary as shit for me! Hm... After, most likely. He'll try to accompany Shoto and visit his mother with him.**

 **-spicyrash: Thank you so much! The tone is light for the moment, though I warn you it will most likely begin to darken as the plot continues. Just FYI.**

 **-IsraAl'Attia-Theron: Glad you liked it ^^ Yup! Shoto is my favorite character (and it's not only because he and I share our birthday), and I always wanted to have some kind of cool sibling. I saw a lot of OC being siblings with Shoto, so I had to improvise without being too obvious. Also, them being so similar in appearance (they share white hair and gray eyes) made easier to make the connection between them. But glad I surprised you with that little bit!**

 **Well, see you guys next chapter!**


	6. Chapter 6

**CHAPTER 6**

 **A/N: Thanks to those who fav/followed my fic, and all anonymous readers!**

 **Disclaimer: My Hero Academia belongs to the fabulous author Kohei Horikoshi. I only own a couple OCs.**

* * *

It was _ridiculous_ how hard it'd been for Shoto and I to have the conversation he'd been aching to have with me. I suspected there was some sort of twisted fate that tried to stop me from having any time for my cousin- thus changing things in the future. It took us two Goddamn _weeks_ for us to meet and make sure no one would interrupt us; between my training with Aquila, and his with Enji (I refused to call him Endeavor because it would be admitting he's a Hero, something that he _wasn't_ in my standards), our time was surprisingly limited, even with our summer vacation still ongoing.

Only when Shoto and I were sitting in my bed and had my door firmly closed, did we manage to have that conversation.

But Shoto didn't begin speaking right away, as I assumed he would. He only glanced down at his green tea for a long time while I gave him the space he needed, eating the mochi and dango Akira made for us to spend time. I refrained my impulse to fill the silence with my (normally useless) chatter, an impulse that only happened whenever I was close to my cousin; I've spent so much time trying to make him participate in my conversations to take his mind out of Enji and his training that I'd forgotten just _how_ to let him recollect his thoughts.

"Hey..."

It began with a hesitant mumble, one I only caught because the room was deadly silent and I sat practically at his side. For some reason, the thick tension stopped me from getting a half-coherent answer, setting it with a non-committal hum, my eyes set in the dango stick I had in my hand rolling in between my fingers. It was a bit sticky because of the sauce.

"I... I have to tell you something."

And _that_ was weird. Since when did Shoto hesitate? I mean of course he was human and he had all the right to doubt when facing a difficult decision or situation, but it was so _un-S_ hoto to express it verbally... I subtly glanced over at him...

... and frowned when I saw his conflicted expression. Yup, something serious alright.

"What's wrong?" I asked, forgetting the tea and the few sweets resting on the plate and half-turning my torso towards him.

His lips furrowed, eyes seething with a fury I've never seen him express. His teeth gnashed on his botton lip, fingers grasping his tea cup a bit _too_ tightly for comfort. I went to grab it, afraid he'd break it and hurt himself—

"My father will be moving me away."

—when _that_ brutal sentence stopped me in my tracks. Ice filled my entrails, its biting cold wiping away all feelings and lingering thoughts.

"Not just from school." Shoto continued, relentless– as if a dam had just been opened and words flooded out, uncontrollable. "I'll be moving to another part of Musutafu City. Most likely, we won't see each other ever again."

"..."

A _biting_ pain in my mouth, followed by the taste of blood– foreign, yet _familiar_.

I didn't need him spelling the situation behind the drastic decision, despite him thinking that I didn't know. I could see, plain as day, the sneering face of Todoroki Enji spitting down at his own son, overruling him— _deciding_ Shoto's fate as he saw fit, as if he were controlling a Mother- _fucking doll_! I could just _see_ him with that condescending smirk, doing as he bid, unstoppable, uncontrollable, like a freaking _boulder_ trampling over every obstacles in the way—

—and suddenly I stopped in my hateful thoughts. I noticed Shoto's cold hand grasping my forearm, tightly but loose enough for me to break through should I wish it. My eyes and my ears, deaf and blind because of the blood rushing and pumping because of the strength of my emotions, returned to reality. To my cousin, that needed me right now.

Struggling to keep myself in the present, I breathed deeply, looking at my cousin when I didn't feel like bashing his dad's head open for what he was doing to him. To _us_.

"Sorry cuz. Didn't keep my cool really well, huh." I smiled awkwardly, touching my cut lip with a cautious touch —caused by my own teeth biting into it.

"I guess not." His defeated tone almost ignited my ire again, but I managed to keep it down.

"... Look, I..." I coughed. Okay, try it again. "I uh..." My mind was blank, and rightfully so. What was I supposed to say?

"It's not your fault."

"Huh?" Caught off-guard, I glanced up at him, grey eyes blinking at him confusedly.

He was still troubled and more than a little angry (at the situation, his father, or both, I didn't know), but my cousin _did_ look a bit more appeased, as if a weight had been lifted from his shoulders. Since _when had_ he tried to tell me this news?

"I want to make it clear for you: it's not your fault." He repeated, his mismatched eyes turning to look at mine. "Neither is your Mom's, of course. All you did was being kind to me. Being my _family_. I... I couldn't ask for more than that." A smile, short and small, but sincere. "So don't blame yourself."

... I was at a complete loss.

Indeed, a tiny bit of myself blamed my own lazy position in this endeavor ( _no pun intended_ ). Since I chose to do nothing about Shoto's situation with his father, part of what has been resulted _was_ my fault after all. Maybe Todoroki Sr. saw how his son seemed to get along well with his mother's sister and her son, and how we were influencing him to overcome his harsh training. Hell, maybe Enji interpreted our familial moments as attempts to drive Shoto away from his _bastard_ of a father.

It _sickened_ me, how his misguided, _twisted_ assumptions only led him to try to isolate his son from _all_ family contact. Not only Shoto felt guilty because of what happened to Yuki, but also Enji forced him to cut all remaining ties to the rest of his family.

I wanted to _beat him_. I wanted it _so badly_ I felt bile rising in my throat.

But I merely dropped a hand on his shoulder, almost making him jump in fright.

"Neither it's yours." I said in all seriousness, trying to convey my message to him via my words and my eyes fixed in his. "We're your family, Shoto. We'll stand by you whenever you need us."

He smiled, again. Though his face regained his typical aloofness as he seemingly thought of something.

"What?" I urged him as I noticed his change.

"I'm going to become a Pro Hero."

That brought me a quirked eyebrow. Not that I didn't know about _that—_

"You said you wanted to become one too..." He kept on, ignoring my silent inquiry.

Something dawned on me.

"We have a common dream." I smiled, catching on what he was implying. "Maybe we won't be seeing each other for a couple years, but—"

"We can apply for the #1 High School for Heroes in Japan, _if not_ the world." He nodded, a confident smirk making its way through his lips. "We can get into Yuuei Academy to become Pro Heroes."

"It's gonna be tough, but _we're_ tougher." My smile turned feral. "Let's become Pro Heroes, cousin. At Yuuei Academy!"

Shoto and I grasped our respective forearms kind of like a warrior salute, our smiles never leaving our faces.

So Fate found a way to screw over my attempts at keeping Shoto away from his father for long, eh? Well, _this_ was my own way of flipping the bird at Fate. I'd intended to go to Yuuei _anyways_ , but this kinda reaffirmed my intentions even further.

"But..." Shoto seemed to doubt as we let go, eyes switching from my face to the closed door. "Your Mom's not gonna be happy with this, is she?"

I blinked, and then suppressed a groan as I though of Mom and what her response would be to this.

He was right.

When I told her of my intentions of becoming a Pro Hero less than two weeks ago, I'd somewhat expected her to express some kind of worry and pride at the same time for having such a worthy dream.

Instead, she'd almost _flipped_ , plain anger showing through her vaguely-coherent screeches. She _vehemently_ refused to let me apply for it, or have any kind of Pro Hero-related dream. Her reaction really threw me off, and it took Akira to use his Quirk to forcefully calm her down. Still, she refused to acknowledge my dream ever since then, even throwing herself into finding a suitable job for me.

I... couldn't say I misunderstood her reasons, when Kaito and I had a serious conversation about why she just had that violent reaction to my dream. He told me about my father, and how Mom suffered when she lost him. She understood Pro Heroes were necessary, but she couldn't bear the thought of her own child willingly plunging himself into battle, as altruist and admirable as his dream was.

Mom approached me later and apologized to me about her violent answer, but still didn't back down on her refusal to let me apply into Yuuei when I was older.

And ever after two weeks of trying to convince her, her answer remained the same.

"I guess not." I groaned, standing up from the bed and stretching my body and wings as far as I could without knocking things over. "I can't really blame her, considering her reasons, but..."

It sent my plans down the gutter to say the least, my mother refusing to let me become a Pro Hero. I knew I didn't want to become anything else— not if I wanted to change things of the My Hero Academia plot and protect all those I could. Without parental permission, or at least an adult responsible for me that would have the final say in my education, then I was _royally and totally screwed_.

Unless...

"Unless I manage to actually get _recommended_..." I mused, a finger caressing my chin. "Would that work?"

Shoto frowned in thought, before shaking his head. "That would tilt your mother's opinion, but still she decides whether you get to enter the Academy or not I'm afraid."

"But if it's enough to make her _doubt,_ then I have an opportunity of getting into Yuuei." I slammed a fist into my palm, grinning. "Aquila-san is a Pro Hero. If I train under him hard enough to get a recommendation from him, then Mom would realize I'm not helpless. That I can take care of myself _and_ protect others by becoming a Pro Hero."

Shoto smiled, standing to his feet. "You still have five years before getting the opportunity to apply to Yuuei Academy. There's time more than enough."

"Yeah!"

I could do this. It saddened me to see Mom so frightful and worried about my wellbeing, but I was convinced I could change her mind with the right assets. I needed to be in Yuuei, I needed to make things better. To stop Shigaraki Tomura, All for One and the League of Villains to break this world apart.

In the end, I wanted a safer world for my loved ones. Including her, even if she didn't know that.

Not for the first time, my heart felt like suffocating under the weight of my future knowledge. Bearing that forbidden knowledge and keeping it a secret supposed a weight unbearable to anyone, even a thirty-year-old man in the body of a child. I was, in all senses except the physical one, an adult through and through. One that was born, lived and died without making any kind of imprint in his previous life, one that refused to see just what he had until all was lost.

Until a stupid car accident brought him... _me_... here.

It took me to _die_ to realize what I lost. All those years, my body pinned to the sofa and my eyes never straying from the TV. Uncaring of my little brother's cries for help, or my father's drunken state, or my stepmom's indifference as she shamelessly took advantage of my father's wealth. Never bothering to make any real friends, or to take care of the few I managed to have. Turning my back to my beautiful girlfriend, that precious angel who sacrificed e _verything_ just to be with me... and who soon discovered I was just another selfish douchebag who only wanted to live his life glued to a TV screen, living a reality that wasn't his own.

' _I need to make amends for all that..._ ' I thought, nails digging into my palm as memories brokenly passed through my mind, foggy and unfocused. ' _I was given a second chance in life. I don't know why, why bothering saving_ me _of all people... But I want to make things better._ '

Yes. I wanted to live the life I should've lived before being brought here. One in which I loved my family, and cherished friends, and helped those in need instead of securing myself at home. I didn't want a life in which I turned my back to it.

Never again.

* * *

Shoto and I never saw each other again after summer break was over. Another student filled his seat whenever I glanced at my side, a kind one, but I never bothered to befriend him. Gurakumi and Matsuoka, who didn't know of this until school, took his departure as bad as I did, and for a long while our outings just... stopped.

I had the small consolation that I would see him again at Yuuei, but Gurakumi didn't want to become a Pro Hero (rather to become a scientist), and Matsuoka just wanted to take on his parents' business. It didn't really surprise me that they had both different dreams, but it saddened me that the friends I managed to have during my childhood would have different dreams. Such was life, I supposed, but... It really sucked. In time, when we got separated to get into our junior high schools, we applied to different ones, and all contact at school was lost after that. In the timespan of a few months, my three best friends were lost to me, two of them almost permanently.

We managed to go out from time to time though, in our breaks. It wasn't entirely the same, but we kept the same atmosphere that we had when we were younger. It lifted my spirits a bit, that at least _that_ part of my childhood would remain untainted.

Moving on, when I talked to Aquila about my desire to become a Pro Hero and Mom's reluctance to accept this, he immediately understood what was going on. He accepted my request of helping me become stronger to get a recommendation for me and convince my mother that, young as I was, I really possessed 'Hero material'.

"However," he warned me with a stern glare, not very different from his normal ones, "I expect you to give your 200% in your trainings from now on. I won't expect anything less from you."

"Yes, Aquila-san!"

His eyebrow twitched, avian eyes _glaring_ at me. "It's Aquila- _sensei_ to you now, Hoseki-kun. Effective now."

If he expected me to back up from that, he was sorely mistaken. "Yes, Aquila-sensei!"

"... Good."

And give my 200% I did. Not only did he take care of my flight lessons, progressively adding more weight to my body and wings ("You can expect to have to save people and remove heavy stuff when making heroics deeds. I'll make you carry weight _at least twice_ your total weight, wings included!"), but _also_ he made me figure out a way of effectively using my Diamond Cover Quirk instead of merely having it as a backup defense. He made me use it as a weapon, covering my fist in hard diamond and test it against all sort of stuff.

He also taught me to fight, taking into account both my Quirks. Having wings, he explained, was both an advantage and an inconvenience; I'd have far more balance and more versatile moves to surprise my rivals with, but my wings were my biggest weak point I could present. You want to bring down a bird? Aim for its wings. Simple as that. Fortunately, I had my Diamond Cover Quirk, and with time and proper training I managed to cover the entirety of _both_ my wings down to the last feather, covering my weakness and even gaining a weapon out of my normally vulnerable wings. I even found a way to obtain _diamond daggers_ by turning my primary feathers into diamond, breaking the joint at its weakest point and _voilà!_ Inconveniences, though: it hurt, it took quite a while to regrow those feathers, _and_ taking those specific feathers meant I couldn't fly- properly, at least, for the period of time that it took me to have those feathers grown back. Usually, it took me three days.

My training occupied much of my time, so I didn't make a lot of friends in junior high school. I was friendly, and passed out as a smart fella with a knack for training non-stop in pursue of his dreams. That was enough for me. Fate once more _fucked me over_ when I was dropped in that school without _any_ of the My Hero Academia guys. Seriously? How many Goddamn junior high schools did this freaking city even _have_?

... Ahem. Anyway, junior high school was a breeze for me, both socially and academically speaking. Because I wanted Aquila to recommend me, I had to study a bit harder to make sure I aced all my exams, but apart from that, it didn't really make that huge of an impact to me as it did when I met Shoto, Gurakumi and Matsuoka. As Julius Caesar said: "Veni, Vidi, Vici." I came, I saw, I conquered. It pretty well summarized what happened at school at least.

And about Mom... Well, she still refused to let me into Yuuei, but I noticed her will weakening the more she saw me train with Aquila. She still couldn't understand just why I was so keen in becoming a Pro Hero, even with me explaining what I could over and over; that I wanted a peaceful world for her to live in, that I wanted to make a difference in history... She didn't give me a verbal consent _yet_ , but I knew (I _hoped_ ) that in time she would relent to my wishes. Aquila didn't do anything to change my mother's mind, but it was enough for me that he was trying to help me by training me.

Until I reached fourteen years old...

* * *

A week before my graduation, our teacher gave us our application forms to fill in as soon as possible for our parents. I collected mine with a molesting knot in the stomach, thinking of my mother and what her final decision would be. Aquila never told me if I was prepared to face Yuuei or that he intended to back me up with his recommendation. It was all a mystery to me, and I found out I _hated_ surprises.

With the proper goodbyes to the teacher and those students friendly enough to return the greeting, I hurried home, almost resisting the urge to just fly home (the 'No Quirks' rule applied, at least if not under a Pro Hero's supervision), my wings flapping occasionally in my hastiness. I made sure I didn't lose my bag, the application form securely safe inside, heart stammering in my chest as I got to the last floor of the building I lived in and got into my apartment.

"I'm home!" I called, my voice strangely tight with nervousness.

I refused to consider the possibility of it already breaking due to puberty. Nope. Not happening yet.

Strangely enough, neither Kaito nor Akira seemed to be home. Mom was waiting in the dining room, a warm tea cup between her hands, dressed in comfortable clothes and a pensive look on her face. Sitting in front of her was...

Oh.

"Welcome home, Hoseki-kun." Aquila was the one to greet me aloud.

Finally Mom turned to look at me, awkwardly standing at the entrance with the bag half-dropped to the ground and wings tight against my back. I'd already taken out my application form in one hand, and was staring at my mother with a look that tried to transmit hope.

"Enzeru." She smiled, but it didn't reach her blue eyes; it scared me a little. "Please sit down. We have to talk."

I swallowed. So far it didn't look good for me. But I obeyed, the fateful paper in my grasp, setting it down on the table as I sat between the two of them.

My heart was beating loudly in my ears. I felt that I was about to face my destiny. And in a way, I was. If Mom decided I didn't get to go to Yuuei, there was no way I could go then; all my plans, my promises, my _dreams_ , would be for naught. I didn't know if I could influence the plot without being a Yuuei student, and I didn't have the time or the means to find a leeway.

If I didn't get into Yuuei, in a word, I was _screwed_.

Finally Mom broke the tense silence by sighing and sipping on her tea. It occurred to me that she didn't know how to approach this either. Or Aquila for that matter, considering he didn't even bother touching his own tea cup, already cold from the looks of it.

"So, it all comes down to this." Mom eyed the application form as if it was the most disgusting thing in the world. I barely had time to think how cliché that sentence sounded before she continued, still eyeing the single sheet. Then her blue orbs rose to fix me with the most serious look I've ever seen in her. "Enzeru. Since you were little, you expressed your desire to become a Pro Hero. Isn't that right?"

 _Gulp._ "Y... Yes Ma'am."

"And you've been training under Aquila-san's supervision," she turned her frigid glare to the eagle-man, who merely sat there... though his wings tensed _juuuuuuust_ a tiny bit, "to achieve that goal. Isn't that right, Aquila-san?"

"That is correct, Hoseki-san." He nodded, all prim and correct.

She eyed us both now, her face carefully blank, eyes just showing the tiniest bit of conflict duelling inside her. I just sat there, trying to figure out what was going through her mind while still trying to keep my hopes up. Mom loved me, and as every loving mother, she sometimes felt the need to protect me from harm. And asking her to let me go to Yuuei was not only harmful for me, but also calling out to Fate's door, suckerpunch it in the face, and _then_ asking it to do its absolute _worst_.

I knew I'd probably do that, if I wanted to change things in the future. _And_ if I managed to get into Yuuei after all.

"You already knew my position about this, Enzeru." Mom continued after a silence in which she managed to recollect her thoughts. "I said I wouldn't allow you to throw yourself into harm's way. And you becoming a Pro Hero is asking for death to come to you. Prematurely, even. Your father—" her voice brought, but after breathing deeply she kept going, "your father died because of his work as a Pro Hero."

I bit my lower lip. She never gave me details about my father's death, but I wasn't naïve; probably a Villain killed him.

"He died for what he believed in." She dropped her voice into a murmur, face downcast and slightly drawn into the past. "He died for you, and for me. And I don't want you to do the same and leave me alone here."

I couldn't help but close my eyes shut as my heart thummed in sympathy, wondering in the back of my mind if Mom intended to use emotional blackmail on me to change my mind about my dreams.

"But," I knew these words came out with a struggle, "I promised I'd give you a chance, if Aquila-san here considered you're ready to take on Yuuei, and if he recommended you to enter the Academy. Then, and _only then_ , I'd relent and permit you to go into Yuuei."

Yes. Those were the words she directed to me in one of her weak moments. I was ashamed to admit that I used that opportunity to plant the seed of doubt in her, but I knew she'd always be worried about me in whatever I chose, which would always be Hero related.

"So, Aquila-san." The man finally opened his strange yellow eyes and stared at Mom, who returned an equally intense glare. "Could you please give me an input of Enzeru's training, and your final evaluation?"

I turned my attention from my mother, who I loved dearly, to my teacher, who I came to respect and see as an almost father-figure. Both had the key to my future in their hands, I knew it. And the knowledge of not having the decision in my hands was unsettling and scary. My adult mind wanted to be in control of my own future, but the still hesitant part of my subconscious that belonged to the boy I legitimately was (at least in this world) just wanted to avoid that huge responsibility, convinced I wasn't ready for it. Not yet, at least.

"Hoseki-kun has a lot to learn yet. He stays in the air longer than he should have, can't control his Diamond Cover at a 100%, and often has risky moves that put him at a huge disadvantage in a fight." As always, Aquila spoke bluntly and to the point.

I winced, knowing all of this was true. Even with all the time that I've spent training (not counting when the elders first introduced me to my Quirks), I still hadn't got a hold on my Diamond Cover, and still misjudged how much time I could spend flying. In fighting, well, yeah, I'd normally act on instinct, and that was a dangerous thing to do. As Aquila continued listing my mistakes, Mom's frown kept in place and I shrunk deeper into my seat, trying to become invisible. This wasn't looking good for me, at all. And worst of all, I didn't have any excuse or convince her that it wasn't true. As desperate as I was to enter Yuuei, I refused to do so by blatantly lying.

"So, in other words, you consider Enzeru is not ready to enter Yuuei." Mom said with a sense of finality, no condescending tone in her voice.

Aquila glanced over at me for a moment before sighing. "Not yet, at least."

Something broke inside me, and I reclined back in my seat, wings reflecting my mood by slumping down and tips touching the floor completely. Disappointment and rejection filled me like a flood, and I had to bite my lower lip again to drown my desperate pleas, to give me another chance, to let me _live my dream_...

I refused to meet their gazes when they both looked down at me, pity evident in their postures and eyes.

"Then, if that's your decision, Aquila-san, I'm afraid I cannot—"

" _However_."

That simple word, normally so conflictive, kindled something in me. I still didn't raise my gaze from the table, but my wings twitched a little, enough for Aquila to know that I had my ears open.

"However, Hoseki-kun is smart and quick on his feet and mind. He's eager to learn and really adaptable to every situation, cooperative and intuitive. A loyal friend and family, whose only wish is to protect those he holds dear with every ounce of his strength."

Unable to believe my ears, I hesitantly raised my head to cast unbelieving eyes to my teacher, who'd never spoken so many words of praise for me, _ever_. He ignored me, eyes fixed on my mother's widened ones, defending me, defending my dream.

"In all my years as a Pro Hero, I've seen very few kids with Pro Hero material." He said at last. "And I can guarantee you, Hoseki Enzeru is one of those kids. I vouch for him."

' _Aquila-sensei!_ ' I forced down the lump on my throat with a heavy swallow, tears prickling in my eyes.

"Y-You said he wasn't ready." Mom tilted her body forwards, desperate, her face and voice trying to refuse the reality. "That if he goes now, he'd most likely be k-k-killed. I can't—"

"I said he wasn't ready _yet_." Aquila corrected her, this time with a softer voice but with the same determination. "I can assure you that when the time comes, I'll be able to get him into one of the best students Yuuei Academy had ever seen. And to ensure that, _I_ will personally recommend him to apply into Yuuei Academy. If, of course," he then pointedly glanced at me and pinned me down with his famous glare, "you demonstrate me that you're up to the task, Hoseki-kun. Up until now you kept pace, but now it's going to become even more brutal. Are you ready for it?"

Aquila was giving me a final chance to fix my mistakes. He was giving me a final way to ensure my post into Yuuei.

"Yes sir!" I snapped into attention, my hand into a military salute out of instinct.

 _How_ could I possibly say no to that!?

" _Aquila-san_!" Mom squeaked, a mixture of horror, despair and fear tainting her voice and making me wince again and glance guiltily at her. "You can't possibly propose my only child to enter Yuuei Academy! He'll get killed! He'll— He'll die at the hands of yet another wretched villain!" Tears began streaming down her face as her trembling hands threatened to break the poor tea cup. "He'll die out there, and I-I'll be left _alone_... I don't want to be alone..."

"Mom..." I muttered, hand going to grasp her arm but failing to do so as I hesitated.

Aquila noticed the almost exchange as his eagle-eyes seemed to glaze over, before breathing out a deep sigh.

"I had a child, once. A daughter." The sudden comment snapped us both back into attention. "She wanted to become a Pro Hero, and despite my reservations, I let her. She was smart, and had a useful Quirk that would let her get away in difficult situations. And even if her strength failed to impress, her friends would always back her up when needed. She graduated at Yuuei Academy, and became a Pro Hero in no time at all. She was ecstatic. I was happy seeing her like that."

I already knew, by the way his face darkened, that this tale didn't have a happy ending.

"Then, it all came crashing down. My daughter and a friend of hers were ambushed by villains, a whole group. They were outnumbered ten-to-one. It was a helpless situation, and it only worsened when they got separated in the struggle. Still, my daughter refused to surrender. She fought, almost singlehandedly, against the villains." His voice trembled. "She won the battle and forced the villains to retreat... but in return, she was mortally wounded, rescuing her friend, who got her out and called for an ambulance first, and then called me. I barely managed to get to her side at the hospital before she expired."

There was a heavy silence, one in which neither I nor Mom dared even breathe, eyes transfixed into the apparently stoic eagle-man who carried a heavy load. Up until now, it never occurred to us the cause of his withdrawal from the world, but now... It seemed too evident.

"I grieved her. For a long time. I still grieve her sometimes." He cleared his throat and glanced at us with a surprisingly clear stare. "But I don't regret her applying into Yuuei Academy."

" _What?_ " Mom's incredulous question cut the air like a knife, punishing as a whip, eyes stormy because of the turmoil of feelings and the touching story. She couldn't believe that someone who obviously had gone through a similar experience as her would still support the Pro Hero Academia so strongly. "Why!? The villains killed your daughter because she was a hero, right!?"

Aquila's eyes flashed with anger. "The villains killed my daughter, _period_." He hissed. "Villains kill, sometimes without discrimination, not caring if their victims are Heroes or not. In fact, it might surprise you the graphics depicting the death rate of Heroes in comparison of that of civilians when related to villains.

"I-I..." She quckly backpedaled, realizing she'd made a mistake. "Well that's true, but... Heroes are more often than not the objective of most villains, am I wrong?"

"Yes. But that's only because Heroes are the only ones that can stand up against villains when they're on a rampage. They have the _legal_ means to do so. If you negate your son to fight for what is right, he'd most likely face the courts for illegally using his Quirks... even if he were using it to do good." He reclined back in his chair. "Law exists for a reason after all."

I only watched the verbal fight, unable to intervene... and surprisingly unwilling to do so. A lump had formed once more at my throat, and I was unable to swallow it down. Still, what could I say in this moment?

"... Why?" Mom asked in a low voice, carefully neutral again. "Why don't you regret her applying into Yuuei Academy?"

For a moment, all he did was keep silent. I tried to interpret his emotions, but as always, the stoic man kept an unreadable facade that hid his emotions very well. Still, I could notice his eyes moisten just a little bit- not enough to form tears, but they glistened with emotion.

"... I spent a lot of time asking myself that same question." He finally admitted. His voice was slightly incredulous. "I hated myself for letting her apply into that wretched Academy, I hated myself for simply encouraging her to become a Hero. If only I had been more insistent, if only I had been there to fight against those villains... then maybe she would still be alive."

' _Aquila-sensei..._ ' I bit my lower lip again.

"But as time went on, I slowly remembered... How she looked when she trained." His beak traced a smile. "How she looked when she finally applied. How she showed me her improvements ever since she got into the Academy. Her Hero name that she chose. Her classes. Her first job she got as a Pro Hero. In all of those memories, she looked... ecstatic. _Fulfilled_. Even with all the danger, the pain, the threat of death looming over her... she just was... happy about all that." His voice trembled again. "And then I knew, and realized how stupid I'd been for not realizing sooner."

He turned gentle eyes to my mother. Empathetic, a kindred spirit, a father with the similar doubts that my mother had... and then some, because he saw all those fears become true before his helpless eyes. And I saw how strong he was in that simple stare, and I admired him all the more.

"I don't regret her applying to Yuuei, deep down... because she was living her _dream_ through it."

My breath caught in my throat.

"She wanted to become a Pro Hero, to help people, to _protect_ them against the villains. And she became one, thanks to me letting her apply to Yuuei. It'd been a really hard decision, one I'd mull over for hours before sleep, but one I ultimately _never_ dared regret whenever I saw my daughter so happy with her duty." A single tear, clear as a crystal, slipped down his cheek. "In her final moments, she even thanked me for that. 'Thanks for letting me live my dream, Dad'. That's what she said to me. And that..." He cleared his throat again. "And that gives me strength and lets me sleep easier at night."

Mom now seemed uncomfortable now, as was I. In the end, we ended up knowing a very personal detail about Aquila, one that he hadn't intended us to know, but had to reveal because of this certain situation.

"The reason I told you this..." Aquila tilted his torso forward, eyes fixed into my mother's yet again, ignoring my presence here. "Is because as much as I understand your pain and your fear, you should also think of what your son _really_ wants. If you smother down his dream, he'd become but a shadow of what he is now. He won't be happy, he won't be himself. He'd be _caged_ ; behind golden bars considering his background, but trapped nonetheless."

"B-But I..." My mother's determination was crumbling before our eyes, but she still struggled to keep her towers high.

"He is _not_ helpless, Hoseki-san." His tone became a tad insistent, brow furrowed in concentration, as if willing the towers to crumble down under his glare. "He's strong, and he _will_ become stronger in nine months' time. I'll make him strong, I promise. Just... let him live his dream. So that you don't have any regrets."

...

A long silence ensued. Mom's eyes had hidden under her white bangs, mouth pulled down into a tight-lipped frown. Her tea cup had long since gone cold, but she didn't bother taking a sip on it anymore. When she finally reached out for my application form, wrote down something in it, and returned it to me, her expression hadn't changed in the least. I swallowed, looking over at Aquila, who nodded encouragingly at me and then at the innocent paper between my hands.

My heart skipped a beat when I looked down at my Mom's neat calligraphy.

There was my name...

My birthdate...

And then... the list of my applications.

The first one being...

I stopped breathing.

 _Yuuei Academy._

...

I... I couldn't do anything. I just stared at the name with bulged eyes, fearful of it disappearing if I tore my eyes off it. I couldn't describe the bundle of feelings swimming in my heart and my head, and I didn't bother to. A migraine was beginning to set in.

I barely felt my mother's arms around me. My dear, beloved mom, always sacrificing herself for me, always putting me over her needs, who pulled me into the _mother_ of all hugs as I felt her tears in the crown of my head, her face buried into the soft locks of white hair I inherited from her. Her entire frame trembled, uncontrollable sobs escaping from her, but I still heard her words, even muffled by my hair.

"Become stronger, my son." She hiccuped, and I noticed her smile in her voice, trembling as it was. "Live your dream, my boy."

And I didn't even _bother_ stopping my own tears as I grabbed one of her arms and held it against my own face, nodding weakly.

"... Yes."

* * *

 **A/N: Oh my what a bundle of emotions here. I even cried a little.**

 **I had to put everything a bit rushed up, but FINALLY the next chapter will be the beginning of the plot per se, as promised!**

 **Oh, junior high school is immediately before high school (from 11 to 13-14 years-old more or less if I'm not mistaken). Sorry if that's incorrect. Had to play a bit with the age.**

 **-Mercimek: Here are more feelings heheh! Hope you like it!**

 **-In Brightest Day: Here's what Shoto wanted to say. Not a good thing I assure you...**

 **Well, see you guys next chapter!**


	7. Chapter 7

**CHAPTER 7**

 **A/N: Thanks to those who fav/followed my fic, and all anonymous readers!**

 **Sorry for the delay! I'd intended to upload on Wednesday, but Halloween was there. Happy Late Halloween, BTW! Hope you had pretty good jumpscares, as I did when playing Five Nights at Freddy's: Sister Location! BALLORA!**

 **Disclaimer: My Hero Academia belongs to the fabulous author Kohei Horikoshi. I only own a couple OCs.**

* * *

The next nine months were the hardest _and_ most exciting months of my life. Keeping pace with school and training under Aquila's supervision occupied practically _all_ my time, leaving only Sundays for me to properly spend time with my mother, as our ritual dictated. Still, my terrifyingly painful cramps would prostrate me in bed with poor Mom taking care of me. She'd offer a tight-lipped smile whenever I apologized, but otherwise kept silent as she massaged my throbbing back and wings. Aquila told me that despite my recommendation to Yuuei Academy (he refused to tell me if he'd sent it in the first place, the bastard), I'd still have to keep pace until my application form was accepted in nine months' time, so I still had to work hard and not slack off. I was fine with that actually; considering what kind of academy this was, I'd expect nothing less from the best Pro Hero Academy in the world.

Ever since she relented and let me inscribe into U.A with Aquila's recommendation, she'd grown a lot quieter and... subdued, one would say. It was painfully obvious for me that she _still_ disagreed vehemently with me going to become a Pro Hero, practically having to fight her own motherly instincts. Our relation remained in a kind-of stalemate, though she slowly warmed up to the situation the more she saw me progress and become stronger than before to face whatever came my way in U.A.

I was only grateful that she hadn't backed up in her word and trusted both of us with our decisions, though it broke my heart every time I'd catch her softly crying at night in her room.

Unfortunately I missed the epic Midoriya-All Might meeting (I was training at that hour) but I _did_ see the news of the slug(?) villain that tried to wreak havoc and managed to almost take someone (Katsuki Bakugo) hostage before All Might came to the rescue. I already knew all about All Might and him training Midoriya to concede him One for All, but I assumed it wouldn't be the same seeing the whole scene in person. Welp, I'd have to content myself with my memories.

And now, nine months later, the last days of March... here I was. A week after the Entrance Exam event, the day the applicants would receive the fated letter. Aquila had stopped training me after the Entrance Exam went underway, later explaining me that I could enjoy a week-vacation and spend as much time with my mother as I could. He _still_ kept mum about my recommendation, and only flew away when I inquired him about that.

Obviously, I had a 99% confident estimation that I'd be expected thanks to Aquila's recommendation... but that 1% still existed, worming its way into my positivism and filling my head with 'What if's that really irked me and threw me on edge. And even now, with Mom and our butlers sitting at the dining table and the accursed letter resting before me, I almost couldn't gather my courage to rip open the envelope and witness my fate with my own eyes. The letter (not an All-Might video, unfortunately) was extensive, but the main four words that I wanted to read were there, plain as day.

I'd been admitted in the Hero Course, thanks to Aquila's recommendation.

Needless to say, that night we threw a huge party; even Mom seemed a bit happier, though I didn't dare assume it'd been Akira's Quirk on the works.

The letter had been written by Principal Nezu, congratulating me for achieving a Pro Hero's recommendation into the best Pro Hero Academy and giving me a short list of the rules of the academy I'd be soon attending as one of 1-A's students. It went on with a petition for me to send them the sketches and estimated materials for my Hero Costume, and finishing with a warm welcome to the Pro Hero Academia.

My smile wouldn't vanish in the next days after that.

Aquila even showed a small mischievous glint in his avian eyes as I told him the wonderful news, brushing away my thanks with an embarrassed blush and a wave of his hand, telling me to concentrate in classes and not slack off. He even told me of what I'd need for my Hero Costume, showing me his own uniform to get a gist of the whole thing. Both of us agreed on the need to keep my body heat when rising in the frigid air, and have as much wind resistant-clothes as possible; in the end I let Aquila take care of my costume ( _not_ the design though, that was _my_ expertise) as he had far more experience than I in this kind of topic.

When the school sent us the uniforms and the books, I immediately became drawn to the topics of some of the textbooks they sent us. They were pretty simple in theory, but they managed to somehow get some philosophical and moral issues underlying some of the topics like 'Timely rescue' or 'Facing a natural disaster'. The book portrayed those cases as that you rescue them if you do this or that, but there are situations that are too complicated for a single person and thus you need to... 'be creative' with the solutions. I'd never expected to see such interesting topics, and thus became ensnared in them.

And finally, the day came...

* * *

As always, I had a hard time convincing Kaito and Akira that I didn't need the limo to take me to U.A, even if it _was_ a bit far from home. I knew I belonged to a rich family, but I wasn't about to parade to the whole school if I could avoid it.

 _ **-"Rich people're snobs, Pete. Git dat in yer head."-**_

Besides, since my wings had grown so large, I'd developed a mild claustrophobia. Not alarming, but it felt uncomfortable now seating in a car or a bus, or even standing in a closed room with a lot of people; bad idea to take me to the disco, unfortunately.

Akira extended my bag filled with books to me after I finished putting on my black running shoes (thank God U.A apparently didn't care for small modifications in the uniform), and looked once more in the full-body mirror hanging in the wall next to the entrance door, making sure I was looking good and forgot nothing.

My white hair had grown a bit spiky, but I managed to keep it slick back as to avoid it getting in my face whenever I flew. My once-pale skin had won a bit more of color thankfully, but not enough to seem dark-skinned; it was somewhat like a peach color. My body had grown quite tall and muscled due to all the training Aquila had made me go through, but it didn't reach Rikido Sato's beefy constitution; it was a bit leaner to get as little wind resistance as possible. The jacket and shirt, as it always happened, had to be sewn so I had a hidden zip-line going up my spine in between my wings. I made sure none of my Diamond Quirk could be seen (I had much more control over it, but _still_ couldn't get it to disappear completely from my body) from under my uniform, and smiled as I readjusted my aviator goggles on my forehead instead of around my neck as I used to. My face had lost most of its baby chubbiness and had grown a lot sharper, but still had a gentle roundness to it that softened my sharp grey eyes. My bird wings with pure-white feathers, especially groomed for the occasion, were folded neatly at my back.

I smiled, my reflection giving me one back, kind but with a mischievous undertone that only those who knew me could see it. Good.

But my eyes shone with uncertainty, and my heart thrummed in nervousness. Honestly, I was a bit scared. There could be many things that could go wrong once I started interfering with the plot as I planned to; or maybe they wouldn't change at all, which scared me even more. For a single moment, a fraction of a second, I hesitated in my dream.

A heavy hand dropped on top of my shoulder, squeezing lightly. I saw Akira smile down at me from my reflection in the mirror. He didn't prod, or try to take away my nervousness; he just smiled. I could see Mom and Kaito smile too at the edge of the mirror, understanding in their soft eyes.

They didn't know. My anxiety wasn't for the reasons they thought. That sent a churning feeling down my stomach. If only they knew what came through my head from time to time...

But they shouldn't know. And thus, I found myself swallowing my disquiet, and gave them all a grateful nod and a smile. Closing my eyes, I breathed in, held it, and then blew it out in a loud gush.

"Okay... I'm ready!" I turned to the three members of my family, hanging the bag on my shoulder. "I'll see you later!"

"Good luck in your first day, Young Master." Both Akira and Kaito bowed politely and got inside the kitchen, politely leaving me a moment with my mother.

At first, she just stood there, taking me in quietly. Her face was drawn back, eyes focused somewhere far from here. For a moment I wondered what she saw. What had her blue eyes glittering in unshed tears, her mouth pulled into a frown? What had her grasping her own forearms like she did right then?

My questions would go unanswered, blue sapphires blinking as she focused on me. Then she drew a smile on her face, one so serene it took my breath away, and her arms opened and drew me into a tight hug. A loving hug, a mother's; one that wanted to keep me in and not letting me go, but knowing she had to, to let me grow into a person. I held her just as tightly, relishing on this precious moment, breathing in her scent of vanilla, struggling to keep my own tears away from my eyes.

"I'm proud of you my son." She whispered, voice muffled into my shoulder where she kept her face hidden (I'd grown a bit taller than her lately). "No matter what, I'll always be proud of you, En-kun."

I tried to swallow down the knot in my throat. "... Thanks, Mom."

"Anytime." Begrudgingly, and after a moment that felt too short, we separated; she held me for a few moments and then smothered down some invisible wrinkles in my jacket (an instinctive action that drew a smile on my face). "Now get going! You don't want to be late to your first day at U.A!"

I chuckled, planting a kiss on her cheek. "Right! I'm off!"

"Have a good day!"

And with that, I ran to Yuuei Academy. I'd woken up a bit sooner than usual because of how far my home was from U.A, having learnt the way thanks to Aquila agreeing me to give me a quick tour there. If I left home at quarter-past ten then went into a run to the school, then I'd make it without a hitch. I'd wanted to arrive first, but in my nervousness I could barely sleep and when I got a wink the sun was already going up.

Not that I wanted to sleep in the first place.

When I finally arrived to U.A, I had to stop for a moment when I saw the sheer _size_ of it, my thoughts vaguely whispering how far Horikoshi-sensei had been from recreating such a monstrous building. Steel and glass formed the majestic construction, shape that reminded me of an 'H' and surrounded by a two-feet tall security wall safeguarded by security members. I had to show them my Student ID Card Yuuei sent me in my acceptance letter, having warned me that the security systems in the "U.A Barrier" entrance wouldn't let me through without me showing it. The scanners planted next to the door let me get in thankfully without so much as a hitch.

Inside, everything looked top-end tech, making my eyes sparkle a little, my nerdy tastes into full-blown action. There were surprisingly little staff in here and even students there, and I had to assume that most of them were teachers already busy with today's schedule. In the shoe-lockers in the entrance, there were lists with our names, our shoe-locker number, and the class we'd be attending. I managed to find mine no problem, and noticed there were _twenty_ students in Class 1-A with me (one being Shoto, thankfully).

Brows furrowed, I scanned the whole list, trying to find out just _who_ was missing.

' _Let's see here... Aoyama Yuga, Ashido Mina, Asui Tsuyu, Iida Tenya, Uraraka Ochaco, Ojiro Mashirao, Kaminari Denki, Kirishima Eijiro, Koda Koji, Hoseki Enzeru, Shoji Mezo..._ ' I narrowed my eyes at the list, seeing all the names (and breathing in relief when I saw Midoriya's and Bakugo's), as if trying to burn a hole into the paper. ' _I'm not sure about the order, but... there's one missing. Maybe if I see the other classes' lists..._ '

And there, in Class 1-B list, I found the missing person. Sato Rikido, much to my surprise.

' _I substituted one of the beefiest characters in Class 1-A? Well at least it wasn't one of the most important ones. Sorry for that Sato._ '

It did give me some kind of respite to see his name on the list though, as if being some kind of compensation from me usurping his legitimate post at Class 1-A. Class 1-B, apart from some jerks (read, people like Monoma), was actually full of kind and fun people; he'd fit right in in no time at all.

I went to my shoe-locker and put my running shoes inside, slipping into the white shoes for interiors. I soon lost myself (not literally, just taking in everything I could) in the hallways, to get a view of everything. I quickly located the cafeteria, the door leading out to the P.E. grounds, the conference room, and even the teachers' office. It didn't really surprise me that the Principal's office wasn't as accesible as the rest of the teachers' -in case of an attack however, he'd be the last one to arrive.

The proper classrooms were up the stairs, an extensive hallway both sides of the stairs, from Class 1-A to Class 1-H, all surprisingly looking the same except for the number and letter displayed on the doors. Opposite each classroom's door, there was a changing room door for both male and female. There were a few students hanging outside the classrooms, idly chatting, but none paid attention to me thankfully.

I breathed deeply, squaring my shoulders as I strode directly to the Class 1-A door. I was nervous, but mostly because I was finally going to meet the famous classmates in the flesh, after years of cursing and badmouthing Fate for not letting me meet them before. I mean c'mon, I get why I shouldn't mess with Bakugo and Midoriya and possibly screwing over the future, but why didn't it let me, I don't know, befriend someone like Hagakure!? I mean, it dropped Shoto as my cousin and I 'coincidentally' met freaking _All Might_ in a Goddamn _store_! Fate makes absolutely no-freaking-sense!

' _Okay, rant's over, playtime is now._ '

I shook my head, slapped myself in both cheeks to liven up (I saw it as ridiculous when I first saw some anime characters do it, but when I tried it, I found it oddly invigorating and relieves some nerves at least) and opened the door.

The classroom was... surprisingly, rather empty. Only three (really quiet) students were sitting at their respective desks, each in their own world, only glancing a moment at the door before continuing with their own business.

I didn't mind that. I couldn't force myself on others, as my mother and the elders at my family often reminded me.

- _ **That's the only reason you're alone, Peter."**_ -

... Anyway, I shrugged mentally to myself and entered the room, closing the door behind me and strolling directly towards my appointed desk, my name taped down on it. I took the label off, sat down, and rummaged through my bag to get my iPod and headphones and my phone as I waited for classes to start.

Hey, I've always been the type of creating suspense instead of outright meeting others. I knew most of the class would be more than willing to exchange greetings with me given the proper time, so with the three quietest students here all I could do was wait for the rambuctious lot to arrive. I did analyze the three already present as I feigned paying attention to the music.

Let's see... The girl, with a very prominent ponytail and rather nice boobs for a teenager, an aura of intelligence and a prim posture... That had to be Yaoyorozu Momo, the other recommended student like Shoto and I. Tokoyami Fumikage looked a bit weird with that raven head, and he looked a bit too tense as he tried to hide from the sun rays. And though I expected him to be massive, I never expected to see Mezo Shoji just _that_ big (about 6' 1 and a bit more if I wasn't mistaken, compared to my own 5' 9 that I barely managed to reach in the last year thanks to my training). I knew I couldn't beat his monstrous strength with those tentacles of his, but I could try and get second place thanks to all my training and my Diamond Cover Quirk.

 _Sigh._ Oh well. Better wait the rest of my future classmates then. Plopping on my headphones, I listened to Hollywood Undead as they sang 'I Don't Wanna Die', flipping open my phone as to check the media with an uninterested facade.

Students began entering as minutes ticked by, each of them calling my attention whenever they entered. I perked up happily when among them I saw Shoto, but soon became discouraged when he only took a glance at me and walked right past me; as I feared, him leaving had brought many changes in his already unreachable behavior. All progress I achieved when trying to make him open up to others had gone back to square one. I had to supress once more my hatred for Todoroki Enji as I glanced at my cousin with a frown, sitting to my left, before sighing and picking up my phone again as he continued to pointedly ignore me. I really hoped Midoriya could get through his defenses, because right now, all I could do was sit back.

"What, no greetings?" I couldn't help but snark at him, my eyes locked in my phone screen.

I felt his cold stare as he glanced at me from the corner of his eye before looking forward again... at the ruckus caused by other students as they rambuctiously chatted among themselves.

"You did manage to get in, huh." He commented only.

I snorted, but inwardly suppressed a grin when he responded anyway. "I told you I would. Mom almost threw a fit when Aquila-sensei confirmed I was prepared, but in the end surrendered to the evidence." A small smile was drawn in my face as I remembered that emotive day of the application form. "I still had to endure a lot of training to get where I am."

Shoto didn't answer, at first. Then... "... Good for you."

... I _swear_ I could feel a massive sweatdrop in the back of my head. But as I turned to him and opened to reply, his drawn expression and exhaustion behind his mismatched eyes made my tongue push the breaks forcefully. I knew what Enji made him go through; I couldn't be cross with him just because I disliked how he treated me after years of being separated.

Instead, I managed to swallow my bitterness and assessed the classroom once more, taking my headphones off. Most of the class was already there, with the exception of Midoriya, Uraraka and our future homeroom teacher, Aizawa Shota. Or maybe, knowing him, he was already snoozing in a sleeping bag outside the door; with how lazy the man was, it wouldn't be surprising. All the students present had agrupated in small groups of two-to-four people each, only leaving me and Shoto alone for some reason. The girls, for some reason, all surrounded Yaoyorozu's desk on Shoto's other side... much to Mineta Minoru's delight of course, who sat right in front of Yaoyorozu. A surprisingly accurate Bakugo Katsuki slouched in his desk, feet propped up on top of his desk and pointedly ignoring -at best he could of course- the annoying blabber of Iida Tenya scolding him and demanding him to behave like the honored student he should be.

And then, the door opened again... to reveal a _reaaaaaaally_ scared-looking Midoriya Izuku standing there, his nervous trembling aggravating when he noticed Bakugo and Iida there.

' _And with this... the show begins..._ ' I smiled as I flipped closed the phone and saved it and the iPod into my bag.

I watched in amusement the scene where Midoriya formally met Iida Tenya and Uraraka Ochaco, stifling a chuckle when Aizawa Shota gave them both quite the scare as they found him in a sleeping bag on the floor. So far everything was going according to plan (and now I have Corpse Bride stuck in my head, _great_ ), which relieved me quite a bit. As Aizawa told us to put our P.E. uniforms on and meet him in the P.E. grounds, I stood up and walked over to the cluster of students all standing there in confusion.

"Well, we'd better go what he says, right?" I smiled over at the others as I picked up my own uniform (conveniently they all had our names sewn in them). "Seems he's not a very patient man."

The red-haired boy I recognized as Kirishima Eijiro snorted as he grabbed his own P.E. uniform. "I think you made the understatement of the year bud."

"Outta the way, both of ya fucks!" Bakugo snatched the jumpsuit from the pile and stormed off the classroom. "I'm gonna show that fucker no one messes with me!"

I felt another sweatdrop, but shrugged to myself as I followed the rest of the guys to the changing rooms. The men's room was quite spacious, and have even lockers to put our normal uniforms and personal items inside if we needed them, something that I was really grateful for. As I examined my jumpsuit, I noticed with relief that the management department took into account my request for a zipline at the back and two holes for my wings to slip through.

"Wow, they even took into account Quirks like yours huh?" A voice drew me back into the present as I looked to the side, my gaze meeting- "Kaminari Denki, nice to meet ya!"

Eyup, Kaminari, with a huge, friendly smile on his face, already on his P.E. uniform. He was eyeing my wings with evident interest, probably wondering how I got recommended with such a simple and straightforward Quirk like flying.

Still, I smiled, finishing zipping up my uniform. "Hoseki Enzeru, likewise."

"Hoseki...?" I saw Sero Hanta pipe up and turn towards us. Man he really looked _plain_! "Hey, isn't that one of those aristocracy families with a shit-ton of money?"

His comment, of course, attracted everyone's attention to me. I sweatdropped a bit at their intense glaring, but managed to keep my smile, it turning a bit mischievous as I cocked my head to the side.

"I'm not really close to my family, but yes." I confirmed with an even voice.

"Pfft!" Bakugo snorted as he crossed his hands behind his head, eyeing me with a condescending glare that I found a tad annoying. "So what, you got in here 'cause of your parents' money? Spoiled much, huh?"

Evidently he didn't care if I got angry at him. Most people would've exploded at that; I was sure my past self would've. Peter Moonhill wasn't someone to let an insult slide that easily, even over something as petty as this.

But I was no longer Peter S. Moonhill. Or at least, not anymore.

I just laughed.

That brought a twitching eyebrow from Bakugo Katsuki, no doubt thinking I was laughing _at him_.

"What're you laughin' 'bout shitface?!" He roared, immediately getting into my face. He reeked of nitroglycerine (probably due to his Quirk transforming his sweat into a substance similar to it).

It was hard to be honest, keeping my smile in my face as I stopped laughing. "Oh, I just found it funny, you know. True, I could've paid any Pro Hero to recommend me and then inscribe into U.A with no trouble at all. That's what you're assuming, right?" It turned slightly _devilish_ then, enjoying Bakugo just a little more peeved than before. "Well why don't you look if I'm all just the money my elders spend in me? If I am, as you say, _a spoiled brat_?"

I heard his teeth grinding against each other, his pulse in his forehead and temples. I knew what I was doing could end quite badly, but nothing I could say would convince him I wasn't one of those snobby kids dressed in gold who got everything easy in life; unless of course, I proved him otherwise with my actions.

Finally, he shoved me against the locker behind me and stormed out. "We'll see 'bout that, Dodo-bird!"

My eye twitched, but otherwise I kept my smile on as everyone got out of Bakugo's way and then stood awkwardly there. "He surely doesn't mince his words around anyone, does he?"

"Um..." Midoriya mumbled as he got closer to me, fingers twirling in front of him. "I-I'm sorry for Kacchan's behavior, Hoseki-san. He's normally uh..."

"... A bit of a handful?"

"Yes-Ah, uh, no! I-I mean-!"

I snickered as he got all flustered, resisting the urge to ruffle his green hair. "Don't worry, I heard much worse, although that Dodo-bird was a first." I admitted, thinking about what insults Peter had to endure growing up. "Besides, anybody could've assumed that if they heard my family's name." I shrugged with a sigh. "Such is life. He only pointed out the obvious conclusion."

Midoriya still seemed unsure, his big eyes silently scanning me. I wasn't sure if something I said made him think, but I got distracted when everyone started talking at once, the mob beginning to get out of the locker room and towards the P.E. grounds. Kirishima, Kaminari and some more stayed with me, trying to get me to speak for some reason about my flying abilities. It felt good, invigorating even, talking with the real protagonists of the anime I loved so much.

Aizawa, Bakugo and the girls were already waiting for us outside. I had to step away to avoid Mineta's droolings as he caught sight of the girls. The ashen-haired kid sneered when he caught sight of me, though I only smiled and waved at him, as if his anger didn't affect me.

And it didn't, in truth. His aggressiveness was only the result of years of overconfidence wrongly handled. When faced with an obstacle, like what Midoriya or Shoto were going to become, his screaming and raging became even louder.

"You're all finally here." Aizawa sighed in tiredness, hiding a yawn behind his hand. "Now we can begin the Quirk Apprehension Test."

Moments of blissful silence. I clamped my hands on my ears...

"EEH!? A QUIRK APPREHENSION TEST!?"

" _Looooooooud_..." I protested, my ears ringing despite having been protected.

Uraraka, horrified, stepped forward as Aizawa turned his back to us. "B-but what about the ceremony!? And the guidance counselor meeting!?"

"If you want to be heroes, we don't have time for frilly niceties." That brought her -and others that thought like her- to a sudden stop, blinking stupefied and mute. "You all understand the school's reputation for freedom on campus. Well, that 'freedom' goes for us teachers, too."

I had to hide a snicker at everyone's hilariously confused faces.

"Softball pitch, standing long jump, endurance running, 50 meters dash, grip strength test, sustained sideways jumps, upper body exercises, seated toe-touch." Our homeroom teacher enumerated, taking a softball out from... somewhere. I didn't pay attention. "These are all the activities you know from middle school, naturally. Physical tests where you were barred from using your Quirks. The country still hasn't gotten around to stardadizing those sorts of records or keeping track of average performance levels. Well, that's negligence from their part."

That was one of the details of the My Hero Academia story that I couldn't get at all. From my estimations, the first Quirk-user was born around half a century ago (at least), and in that time, the Quirks had been popping up and rising their numbers like a massive wave; right now, more than 80% of the population _in the entire world_ possessed at least one Quirk. With Quirk-users being a majority, one would've thought of a way of balancing the odds and getting some Quirk-specialized schools depending on the type of Quirk you possessed (of course there'd be normal schools for Quirkless). But no, they decided to keep normal schools active, mixing the Quirkless and the Quirk users together (and prohibiting the latter from using their powers, which was perfectly understandable). I thought making the Quirkless feel integrated and not like pariahs was a good sentiment, but... Well, see what happened to Midoriya, and he was lucky enough to acquire One for All.

"Bakugo," I came back just in time to hear Aizawa call out to the ashen-haired explosive boy, "how far could you pitch a softball in middle school?"

"67 meters." He grunted out, his interest spiked.

By answer, the man threw the ball at him. "Try using your Quirk this time around. As long as you don't exit the circle, anything you do is fine. Don't hold back."

My eyebrows almost joined in a frown; back at middle school, I could throw the softball around 46 meters, without my Quirk and when I still hadn't begun my proper flight training. What could I-

"DIE!"

 **FA- _BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!_**

Whereas everyone was shocked and a bit scared of Bakugo's chosen 'rallying call' (if you could call it that), Aizawa just took his phone out with the same deadpan expression as always. I just... tried to remember how to breathe, dreading the moment I'd feel his explosions in my flesh.

"Before anything else, one must know what they're capable of." He turned the screen to show us the 705.2 meters mark Bakugo had gotten. "This is a rational metric that will form the basis of your 'hero foundation'."

And then, Ashido Mina began cheering, quickly followed by the rest of the students (the rambuctious ones, of course). I just bit my lower lip, seeing Aizawa's expression darken. I _could_ stop him from giving us the 'Try-or-leave' ultimatum, but then the guys wouldn't take this seriously, and _that_ would without a doubt get almost everyone expelled immediately, no ifs or buts.

The temperature began dropping. I felt cold eyes in my soul. I shivered, turning to see Aizawa with a dark expression on his face. It scared me when I saw it on the anime, but here, in the flesh, it felt all more menacing his threat.

"So you were planning to spend your three years here having a good ol' time? What happened to becoming heroes?" I swear someone let out an 'eep' somewhere behind me. "All right, then. In that case, new rule: the student who ranks last in total points will be judged 'hopeless'... _and instantly expelled_."

If I didn't know his ruse, I'd seriously would've believed him, so dead serious were his black eyes as he stared down at us. He smiled, drawing back the hair from his eyes. "Our 'freedom' means we dispose with students as we please! Welcome to this... **the Department of Heroics**!"

 **Ba- _DUM!_**

A familiar feeling, one I'd get when making dangerous maneuvers while flying, suddenly came rushing through my veins. I recognized the adrenaline, tinged with a bit of fear. I knew some of the others felt it too, but still, there were a few who tried to change Aizawa's mind:

"This is our first day here!" Uraraka protested, her voice raising above the others'. "But even if it weren't... That's just too unreasonable!"

"Natural disasters, massive accidents, ego-mad villains... All kinds of calamities can happen when we least expect them. Japan's now positively drenched in 'unreasonable'. And it's our job as heroes to reverse it all, and restore reason. If you were counting on a friendly chat at the local McDonald's after school, that's too bad. From now on, for the next three years, all you can expect from your life at Yuuei is one hardship after the other."

' _You don't know the half of it._ ' I bit the tip of my tongue to keep my thoughts in.

"This is ' **PLUS ULTRA** '. I expect you to overcome these trials and climb to the top. Time to step up to the plate."

The air crackled with barely-contained excitement when his speech finished. I smiled, the rush of adrenaline fresh in my veins. I had to do my best, even if at the end Aizawa wouldn't expel us. Still, the sentiment that crossed through everyone's minds was the same:

" _Bring it on!"_

The first trial was the 50-meter dash, which was rather complicated for me because I was quite heavy. I had to be creative and managed to get a decent score, 4:37 seconds, by flapping my powerful wings that boosted me forwards quite a bit.

The second trial, grip strength test. I reached second place with a glorious 194 kilos, thanks to Aquila's harsh training of making me carry up to _three times_ my weight and still manage to fly comfortably, and also thanks to my Diamond Cover in my palm (I didn't want to reveal my other Quirk to the class yet). It dwarfed in comparison with Shoji's impressive score (seriously, 540 kilos!? Even having six arms, that was a bit overload!), but it consoled me that I was the _second_ strongest in the class.

The standing long jump was a breeze, what with my wings carrying me _all the way_ to the other side of the sand pitch.

The sustained sideways jumps... Well, I admit I tripped on my wings and got a pathetic score. Enough said. Seriously, you can't be agile with _wings_ that weighed you down!

And then, the softball pitch. Midoriya came out before me, so I had the opportunity to watch him slap Aizawa's argument back at him. While I prepared my muscles for my own throw, I watched the poor kid enter the circle, eyes wide in silent horror.

"Midoriya's not doing too well, is he?" Iida lowly commented, apparently to Uraraka. Bakugo, standing near him, snorted.

"Of course not! He's a Quirkless fucking guppy!"

I refrained myself from slapping him upside the head. He'd learn to respect Midoriya sooner or later. Or at least, acknowledge him as a worthy rival instead of just a pebble in his path. I just had to trust Midoriya's overwhelming personality...

"46 meters."

I had to close my eyes and shut down the scene before me. I knew Aizawa would give Midoriya a second chance, but seeing the poor boy having his confidence crushed after erasing his Quirk was... just too much. Even if Midoriya took our homeroom teacher's words as some sort of challenge instead of letting them crush him, it was still hard.

An knowing I could avoid it and not do anything.

' _It's for his sake._ ' I thought, a mantra I kept repeating to myself a lot lately, especially when facing these kinds of situations. ' _He'll grow up from this..._ '

And grow up he did, from the way Aizawa Shota genuinely widened his eyes and let out a sound of pleasant surprise and a bit of happiness, Midoriya having thrown the softball a good 705,3 meters, barely managing to beat Bakugo's score. I smiled and relaxed my tense posture, genuinely happy for him-

-and widened my smile when Bakugo got stopped by Aizawa, getting scolded and told to calm down if he didn't want to get expelled.

The rest of the tests came by like a breeze, me managing to keep my scores average (my wings proved to be a nuisance in the seated toe-touch test and the upper-body exercises, but I did have a lot of stamina that served to get a decent score in the endurance run). Poor Midoriya, as expected was terrified by the end of the eight tests, having only excelled at the softball pitch test.

As we all surrounded Aizawa for him to give us the results, I took pity on the poor boy and put a hand on his shoulder. He didn't startle, only looking over his shoulder at me.

"Hey, cheer up, Midoriya-san." I smiled softly, trying to give some of courage to him.

"Time to present in the results." Aizawa interrupted me from saying anything else. "The total is simply the aggregate sum of each of your scores. If I recited all your scores it'd take a million years, so I'll disclose them all at once." There was a small silence before he continued with the same nonchalance. "Oh yeah, that whole 'expulsion' thing was a lie."

' _Snrk! Don't laugh, don't laugh-!_ '

"It was a logical ruse to pull out your best performances."

" _WHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAT!?"_

' _Pffffffff! Their faces!_ _Oh God I'm gonna die again!_ '

I swear I didn't know how I held the cackles in.

There it ended, the Quirk Apprehension Test, our first trial... and we all passed it. Even Midoriya, much to his silent delight. But whereas everyone else rushed to see their scores, I neatly avoided them and got straight to the locker room to get changed into the normal uniform. I didn't care about my score; I only wanted to protect everyone, and by becoming a Pro Hero, I could use all my power to do so. Of course I wouldn't slack off in my grades, but as far as I passed, I honestly didn't give any more thought or importance to it; not more than it should've at least.

It really gladdened me that everything kept going according to the script instead of weirdly changing things out of the blue too drastically. Of course I didn't take any active participation in anything- maybe getting Bakugo to hate me a little, but other than that, it seemed everything was fine. Talking with All Might four years ago apparently did nothing either to change the storyline.

But I knew I had to tread carefully from then on, especially when the Villain Invasion began. Not only it'd be our first contact with villains, but also it'd be a turning point in our growth as future Pro Heroes... and a potentially dangerous path if I let Aizawa, All Might, Mr 13 and Midoriya get _that_ badly hurt. I wasn't so naïve as to pretend I could stop Shigaraki Tomura from appearing altogether, but _maybe_ I could change the outcome by protecting all those I could from harm.

I had Diamond Cover to potentially protect myself from Nomu's terrifying punches, and my flight to boost my speed. Not much, but it'd have to do.

Once classes were over (a detail neither the manga nor the anime showed, was that after the Quirk Apprehension Test we still had normal classes, in which the rest of the Pro Heroes were presented to us), I couldn't say goodbye to Midoriya. I did however manage to spend some time with some of the guys and get to know them better- outside than merely through the manga, you know. It was weird, interacting with them this way. It made me feel unique in a way.

"Maaaaan, that test really threw me off!" Kaminari let out a _looong_ tired sigh. "Aizawa-sensei's trying to kill us, I tell ya!"

"I think he was quite right when he talked about us giving our all if we had the threat of expulsion over our heads." Tokoyami commented, earning a nod from me and Koda Koji. The guy was so silent it was almost adorable.

"Still, he could've loosen up the pressure, right?" Mineta was somehow managing to keep pace with everyone while talking. "I mean, I was really scared I'd end up going home after all we've been through!"

"But we didn't, in the end." Shoji grumbled out, not unkindly though.

"Shoji-san's right." I chose to speak then, smiling warmly. "Aizawa-sensei did tell us that in the next three years we'd have to face multiple obstacles. All we have to do is blast through them and rise as the victors. How'd he put it...? Plus Ultra, right?"

Kirishima laughed and palmed my shoulder. "That's the spirit! You're totally manly Hoseki!"

"Ah, thank you." I rubbed the back of my head with an awkward smile, then paused in my walk as I noticed something. "Oh, this is my way home guys. See you tomorrow."

As most of them said goodbye to me, the local redhead piped up. "Oh, wait, gimme your number Hoseki! In case we need each other, we'll have our numbers!"

"Oh, good idea."

With that I gave him my number, and after his promising that I'd be added to the chat group, I left them with waves of my hand.

I was happy. Scratch that, I was _elated_. The first day at school, and it had been even better than I imagined. I could worry about future events later on, because right now?

I was living my _dream_. And nothing could make me happier.

* * *

 **A/N: Phew! I wanted to get ALL of the Quirk Apprehension Test in this chapter, and I did it! Barely. It felt rushed up at the end, but only because it's like 11 pm here at home and I reaaaally need my sleep. So sorry if everything's a bit bundled up. As always, please give me your awesome support and please point out anything you may think of interest: things I could improve on, mistakes, tips to keep this thing flowing...**

 **-In Brightest Day: I'm glad I managed to surprise you! It's one of the things that I find most gratifying out of writing, to be honest. This feeling of surprising my readers. I felt I was making Enzeru's mother a bit too compliant and docile to her son's whims, so I made her disagree with her decision based on an obvious feeling about this. He didn't have that much impact here, but it's just the beginning! Hope to see you next chapter !**

 **-Nemforellik: Thank you so much Nem, I'm always happy to see your reviews! Oh, thanks for pointing that up, I already corrected them by the time I upload this chapter. As I told In Brightest Day, Koe was becoming a bit too docile for me, so I had to change that up. Glad it worked out. I hope I don't disappoint with this chapter! He doesn't have much of an action here.**

 **-chibi-no-baka: Right? I did cry, because it felt like my own mother telling me those words. I'm glad you like it! I hope I don't disappoint you or anyone here!**

 **-kylC: Sorry! But I'm glad you like them anyways! My One Piece fic is a bit on hold because I'm having problems with the next chapter, but as soon as it's ready I'll upload it right away, I promise.**

 **-Emo Lord: Thank you! But please get some sleep! It's good for your health.**

 **-PLAYERTK: Thank you so much! Here's the update!**

 **Well, see you guys next chapter!**


	8. Chapter 8

**CHAPTER 8**

 **A/N: Thanks to those who fav/followed my fic, and all anonymous readers!**

 **I'd intended to put the whole 'Trial of Battle' in one chapter, but I got tired along the way. So, I split it in two. Let me know what you guys think about my decision and any other mistake you may find in the chapter please.**

 **Disclaimer: My Hero Academia belongs to the fabulous author Kohei Horikoshi. I only own a couple OCs.**

* * *

One thing anime and manga failed to show (or omitted at any rate) was the timeline in which the events occurred. The main events, I mean. Of course Horikoshi-sensei would skip over the most tedious parts of My Hero Academia, which was still a story about highschoolers living their life through school. No matter that Quirks and the existence of Heroes and Villains spiced things up and made things different, if you leave those details aside, the main basis didn't change from, for example, Sailor Moon.

In other words, while there were pretty cool subjects like the one All Might would teach us soon, there were _also_ the boring ones. The ones expected to be taught to fifteen-year-old children. Maths, English, History, etc.

Facing that part of my forgotten past was _not_ pleasant. Why? Because I had the mind of a thirty-something guy who already faced all this a freaking _lifetime ago_! And that was even _literally_ speaking, which frustrated me even more!

So... Yeah. As most of the class _struggled_ to keep up with Present Mic's English lessons or tried not to sleep with Cementoss' History lessons, I breezed through them, like Midoriya, Yaoyorozu, Shoto and (surprisingly enough) Bakugo. It became a regular thing that people would approach the first two and myself to ask questions (Shoto would coldly disregard anyone, and it was more than likely that Bakugo would tear your head off before answering any question -most of the time at the very least).

Needless to say, I couldn't just sit back and relax just because I knew the teaching material. If I wanted to remain here as a Class 1-A student and make it through the whole plot (changes or not, I _still_ hoped I wouldn't screw over it so much I wouldn't be able to predict what was going to happen next) without being thrown out of school or transferred to any other class (I'm sorry Class 1-B and beyond, but Class 1-A was just _awesome_ ), I had to study my ass off enough to ensure my position here.

My elders regularly calling my mother in regards of my education _didn't_ have anything else to do with it.

Speaking of which, the elders had been... oddly compliant with my wishes of becoming a Pro Hero. Sure they warned me of the consequences of me not being able to make it through the classes and the training and all the jizz, but other than that, they didn't get angry or show concern for my obviously more-than-dangerous career. I mean, I could potentially _die_ fighting Villains or even trying to rescue other people! Weren't they worried about that prospective?

The answer, though cruel, was awfully simple.

" _You're not our only heir._ " One of the elders told me with a cold, efficient voice. " _If you die, our family won't disappear._ "

... To say I was 'angry', it seemed a little farfetched. I was _furious_ , and _disgusted_ by them. Of course I knew most of the noble families normally have only the worry of preserving their own family's domination and power instead of worrying about their own family members, but _man_ , knowing I belonged to that kind of family...

I considered rejecting my belonging to those asshats. I _seriously_ _ **considered it**. _But, as much as it hurt me to accept it, they were my _only_ connection to my father, the family he left behind to protect my mother and me. Rejecting their name would be like turning my back to _him -_ and I already lost one father in my previous life. Sucking up with a few pompous old geezers seemed too easy a price to preserve my father's memory.

That didn't stop me from behaving like a total _bastard_ whenever they called in. And it really explained quite a few things of them when they didn't even _bother_ correcting me and telling me to behave properly, though their chilly silences spoke volumes.

I was just a tool for them. Just like Shoto and his siblings were just a tool for his father. Just like everyone with a useful Quirk was a tool for All for One.

Just like, just like, _just like_...

So many examples. Was this the awful reality hidden behind My Hero Academia? One of the multiple awful realities hidden that most anime-lovers refused to see or overlooked in favor of the cooler things?

Having Quirks was cool. Being given a second chance, was _awesome_. Living in a place where you could make a difference, it was _godlike_.

But not everything could be perfect.

"Hoseki?"

And just like that, I blinked into reality. Ojiro, Kaminari, Mineta (for some reason) and Shoji were looking down at me with varying degrees of curiosity and/or very well disguised concern.

I'd spaced out. Again. I'd been doing that a lot lately, considering the _actual_ plot was taking place right now and I was really worried that I'd changed things. I mean, of _course_ I'd change things, but did my untimely and —as far as I knew— unpredicted presence here change anything _at all_? Apart from sending Sato to Class 1-B, being related by blood to one of the most powerful families in Japan, having found both Midoriya _and_ All Might before the actual plot began, having Shoto as my cousin...

 _Aaaaaaand_ I'm spacing out again.

"You're going to burn a hole into your desk if you glare at it that way." Ojiro commented, smirking as his tail swished.

He and I had formed a surprisingly quick friendship bond, what with both of us having only extra limbs as Quirks (or so he thought anyways —I'd still haven't told anyone about my Diamond Cover Quirk, not even Shoto). I genuinely liked him, so forming a friendship bond felt incredibly good to have.

We bonded in a classroom where most of the students had overpowered or at least extremely useful Quirks in battle.

"I'm just having some difficulties with one matter, Ojiro-san. Don't concern yourself." I forced myself to smile and waved my hand in a dismissive manner.

... Yeah, my prissy speech hadn't left me. I doubt it would in the end to be honest, seeing for how long I'd been educated this way.

"What're you thinking about?" Kaminari plopped an arm around my shoulders. "Maybe we can help!"

This time my smile turned a bit more genuine, and a tad apologetic. "Thank you, Kaminari-san, but I don't want to trouble you."

I couldn't say I'd been thinking of the future events and how worried I was to see them become true. As much as I trusted my new friends, I couldn't bear to put that burden into their shoulders too.

"Aren't we friends?" Shoji extended one of his tentacles, a mouth on its end, and cocked his head to the side. "This is what friends are for, right?"

"Is it a girl problem?" Mineta snickered mischievously, a blush crossing through his face. "I know, I know. You can ask me whatever about girls, I know a lot about how to treat them and conquer them!"

I blinked. It shouldn't have surprised me, considering it was _Mineta_ who spoke up about girls all the time.

"I think you're the one with the least probabilities to get a girl, Mineta." Ojiro commented with a sweatdrop as he looked down on the secretly drooling small boy.

I just chuckled. To be honest, girls had been far, _far_ away from my mind, but I somehow understood that as teenage boys and girls, hormones ran a bit wild in most of the kids this age. Me, with my adult mind, I just couldn't see a girl supposedly my 'age' like Uraraka or Jirou and feel myself attracted to her in any way; in a word, I'd feel like a freaking _pedophile_. And if I liked an older girl, of my 'mental' age, then it would be the same but the other way around. Talk about _awkward_.

Fortunately, the ringing bells saved me from giving _any_ sort of uncomfortable answers. After a wave, we all returned to our respective desks and waited for the next class in barely-conceived excitement.

Why?

Foundational Hero Studies. Which meant... _All Might was here!_

I swear I could sense All Might's gigantic footsteps just outside of the class quickly approaching the door if I concentrated just enough. And thanks to my advantageous position, I could see Midoriya two desks ahead and another two to the left shaking in excitement. I could only imagine the massive smile he should be wearing on his face right now.

" ** _I AM HERE! Through the door, like a normal person!_** "

And just like that, everyone just _exploded_. Understandable, really, considering it was the freaking _Symbol of Peace_ the one teaching us lucky kids. No one, not even Shoto or myself could contain at least an excited grin when he appeared through the door with his Silver Age superhero costume.

But a pang of guilt and regret wiped my smile out of my face as I watched his sempiternal smile. The echoes of his words when he told Midoriya about the reason why he kept smiling; partly to give hope to others, and partly to hide the pain and terror he felt as his end drew nearer each day. Even now, simply keeping up his All Might form, Toshinori Yagi was wasting away his precious minutes... and his diminishing strength.

Could I have done something to stop their fight and prevent him from getting that terrible injure? Could I live on with the knowledge of certain events that could have been played differently if I only tried?

Even knowing that Midoriya could have _not_ have obtained One for All if I helped All Might...

... Would I _ever_ stop asking myself these questions someday?

" **Foundational Hero Studies!** " All Might's... mighty voice brought me out of my somber thoughts. " **For this class, we'll be building up your Hero Foundation through various trials! You'll get tons of credits for it!** "

And with a grandilocuent gesture and a smile bigger than ever before, he showed a plaque with very specific words on it:

 **TRIAL OF BATTLE**

" **LET'S JUMP RIGHT IN WITH THIS; THE TRIAL OF BATTLE!** "

Murmurs crossed through the classroom in obvious excitement, and I felt a chill of excitement running down my spine. Even having anticipated this, it felt as awesome as seeing this scene on TV or through the manga. Scratch that, it felt even more awesome!

" **And to go with your first battle...** "

With a surprisingly silent whirring noise, four columns came out from the left side of the class (the one with no windows), revealing compartments where I knew our battle gear was waiting for us. My smile stretched and turned slightly feral as I saw this.

" **Costumes made based on your Quirk registrations and requests you sent in before school started.** "

"OUR BATTLE GEAR!" Practically... _all_ the class roared. I swear Bakugo had the prize for the highest voice there though. He really knew how to be enthusiastic in the prospect of a battle.

Most of us didn't listen to All Might as he explained where to reunite with him (I already knew it was Ground Beta, but I wasn't sure if anyone else knew that) as we hurried to get our battle gear and costumes from the small cabinets bearing our class number (mine was #10, replacing Sato) and quickly followed the way into Ground Beta (which surprisingly, wasn't actually that far from the classroom, just down the stairs and across a _loooong_ hallway left to the mess hall). There were locker rooms there too, one for each gender, so we quickly got inside and changed eagerly into our respective costumes, saved into hefty suitcases.

Turning my back to the others and ignoring their eager exclamations and various gasps or whines as they sorted out their things. Me, I just had to get a _gooooood_ look at my sweet baby, see what those development and logistic deparment dudes did to my design.

The dark-blue, full-body jumpsuit with streaks of black fit like a glove, not too tight or too loose; I won't bore you with the details (I didn't even know half the names of the materials used anyway) but suffice to say that the department boys made a pretty good damn job. Pretty light material, holes the appropriate size as to not perturb my flight, cut-resistance, water-resistance and _also_ was supposed to keep my body at normal temperature during high flights with a mixture of nylon for the outer layer, polypropylene for the base layer and thinsulate in the insulater layer, just between the two former. It had a utility belt attached around its waist with four pockets that would fit anything the size of my fist at least, one filled with first-aid material (bandages, morphine, some painkillers, even some anticoagulant cream) and two small air-compressor tanks at my lower back and out of my wings' way, along with a breathing mask in another of the pockets.

The knee-high boots had roughly the same materials, added with some softness and the design of ethereal wings both sides of my calves, and my hands were covered in brown gloves, and though I didn't have a helmet or anything like Iida's, I still had the goggles Gurakumi and Matsuoka gifted me four years ago and that I carried with me everyday. I'd also taken all my feathers-turned-diamond and modified so that they had handles to be manipulated as daggers and poured them all into one of the pockets of the belt.

Feeling prepared, and after shifting my wings in anticipation, I lined up with the others as we heard All Might's voice as we stepped out and into the fake city from the Entrance Exam in unison, pumped up and full of excitement and eagerness to prove ourselves.

" **And don't forget! From here on out... You're all officially _HEROES_!**"

I knew I'd never forget the rallying feeling of stepping out along with my classmates and (hopefully) my friends. That pumping excitement, the adrenaline coursing through my veins. It felt invigorating. I felt powerful.

"Nice costume, Hoseki!" I heard Ojiro compliment me as he approached me donned in his karate-like outfit with the furred collar. He seemed pretty comfortable with it however, as evidently shown by his smile and the pleased swishing of his tail.

"Thank you Ojiro-san, you look nice too." I smiled as I turned completely towards him.

"Well, I couldn't think of any design that could fit me better than this..." He rubbed the back of his head with an awkward chuckle. "Still, they did a pretty good job with it. I'm feeling really well in this outfit."

"As long as you feel comfortable with it..." Tokoyami of all people approached us and evaluated our costumes with an analytic eye, his avian bird never changing. His own dark cape that he used to cover his whole body complemented his Quirk really well.

As he examined our costumes, All Might gave us pointers and some comments on them with a giant smile on his face —as always, but it looked even wider now.

" **Ojiro, my boy, that karate outfit is brilliant!** " He directed a thumbs up at my buddy, who blushed and beamed at him at the same time. " **You too, Young Tokoyami!** " Tokoyami didn't say anything or expressed any outwards feeling, but I sensed he felt at least a bit embarrassed for the attention.

And as All Might turned to me to comment on my own outfit, I saw him hesitate for a split second, so fast it almost went unnoticed by me. For a second I thought he recalled my encounter with him as Toshinori Yagi and my likeness to that winged boy, but somehow I managed to keep my face in an eager manner, waiting for him to comment on my own costume. Soon he'd gotten his bearings back, and had noticed no change in me besides the childish behavior he'd expect from someone who didn't relate him to Toshinori Yagi.

" **Young** **Hoseki, that costume looks really aerodynamic... Nice work!** " And he directed another thumbs up at me.

"Thank you, All Might-sensei!" I beamed at him, pointedly ignoring his previous pause as if it didn't happen.

Looking away and over the _massive_ fake city extending in front of our eyes, I couldn't help but to feel respect and admiration in equal measures to the Pro heroes that created it in the first place. Probably it hadn't been created all at once, but expanded over the years the more hero aspirants entered the Academy. It was probably work also of many Pro Heroes working together, not only one of them.

"Sensei!" I heard Iida speak up, buckled up in his armor and voice muffled by his helmet. "Regarding the performance ground we'll be using, is it the mock-city from the Entrance Exam!?"

" **You'll see —in fact, take two steps and you'll be there! This will be an _indoor_ battle trial!**"

I frowned, my wings ruffling in reflex. In a way, I felt discouraged that our Trial of Battle would take place indoors instead of outdoors, where my main Quirk would be more useful —and I wouldn't suffer from mild claustrophobia either. I wouldn't be a nuisance by any means, but I'd engraved the instinctual movements in my wings so much that it could affect even my balance when treading into a closed off corridor.

" **Villain-cleanup is usually seen out in the open, but statistically the better part of it is an indoor job. Most acts of villainy are committed indoors.** " His voice turned slightly serious, but still bore that great smile on his face as always. " **Imprisonment, house arrest, the black market... In this Hero-saturated society -why, _any villain_ with intelligence is lurking in the shadows!**"

All Might wasn't all that wrong in truth; more often than not, Villains preferred to stay indoors instead of bringing the fight out in the open, where they could be ambushed from practically _anywhere_. If they fought inside a building, their possibilities of defeating or at least fleeing from the Heroes rose up exponentially -even more if they knew the building down to the last brick.

" **For this test, you'll separate into 'Villain' and 'Hero' groups. For a two-on-two team battle!** "

Asui Tsuyu tilted her head to the side. "What about the foundational training?"

" **This _is_ foundational training! Only this time, there won't be any robots it'd be okay to just destroy!**"

' _I see..._ ' I thought, rubbing my chin with a gloved hand as the class began asking questions in unison. ' _I'd never thought about it, but it_ really _makes sense that our first training would be far more in-topic than what Aizawa made us do in the Quirk Apprehension Test._ _As Mr 13 said, we're testing now how dangerous our Quirks can be when performed into another person._ '

" **For this training, we'll have some 'Villains' guard a nuclear weapon they intend on deploying!** " All Might continued with his explanation. " **The 'Heroes' must stop them and their nefarious scheme before it's too late! If the 'Heroes' capture the 'Villains' or reach the nuclear core before the time runs out, they win. If the 'Villains' manage to keep the core the whole time or capture the 'Heroes', they win. Your teammates and opponents will be chosen by lottery!** "

"Is that really how we'll do it!?" Iida exclaimed in shock.

"I don't know, maybe we should be paired up with someone that complements our Quirk..." Hagakure Tooru, the invisible girl, commented with a dubious voice. It felt _weird as hell_ talking to a pair of floating gloves -and uncomfortable knowing that the girl was _completely nude_!

"When we begin working as Pro Heroes, maybe we won't have that luxury." I crossed my arms over my chest as I answered her, even if she had just spoken to herself mostly. My sudden comment drew everyone's attention to me. "Many times the distress calls won't give us time to reunite with our sidekicks in time, so we'd have to adapt to the Pro Hero that is closest to the danger. Ideally, we'd have a companion that complements our Quirk, but staying always together isn't always the ideal case... or sometimes, the ideal solution."

" **It is as Young Hoseki says!** " All Might's finger snapped up. " **Sometimes you'll have to adapt yourselves to the situation at hand, with the companions that have been chosen for you. Anyway! Let's start this! Stand in a line and draw a paper from this box!** "

Five minutes later, these were the results of the impromptu lottery:

Team A: Midoriya Izuku - Uraraka Ochaco.

Team B: Todoroki Shoto - Shoji Mezo.

Team C: Yaoyorozu Momo - Mineta Minoru.

Team D: Bakugo Katsuki - Iida Tenya.

Team E: Ashido Mina - Aoyama Yuga.

Team F: Asui Tsuyu - Koda Koji.

Team G: Kaminari Denki - Jirou Kyoka.

Team H: Hoseki Enzeru - Tokoyami Fumikage.

Team I: Hagakure Tooru - Ojiro Mashirao.

Team J: Kirishima Eijiro - Hanta Sero.

It surprised me that instead of substituting Sato as Koda's companion, I'd been paired with Tokoyami. It could only be explained as my mere presence changing things, or it could've just been the luck of the draw —pretty strange luck if it kept everything the same except for my pairing. Oh well.

Tokoyami, instead of giving me any kind of encouragement, merely nodded to me —I answered the same, albeit with a small smile.

All Might clapped his hands to attract our attention as he stood between two boxes, one with the 'Hero' label and the other with the 'Villain' one.

" **And the first two pairs to do combat will be the following!** " He stuck both hands in the boxes at the same time and brought out two baseball-size balls with capital letters engraved in them.

My stomach dropped when I saw them.

" **Pair A will be 'Heroes'! Pair D will be 'Villains'!** "

Even in this reality, those two were destined to face each other, huh.

" **This will allow Young Iida and Bakugo to get inside the heads of villainkind! This is a practical exercise, so go all out without fear of injury! Though naturally, we'll cut it short if things get out of hands!** "

I bit my lower lip as I saw the four of them take a map, the capturing tape and a pair of wireless transceivers and head out, having given five minutes to strategize each. Bakugo's evident sneer towards Midoriya wouldn't let him take things lightly —and even if he weren't fighting against 'Deku', his pride wouldn't let him do things half-assed. In a way, that was one of the things that I admired of him the most —despite of him being a _dick_ with Midoriya and his natural condescendence towards everyone else, he actually had the power to back up his words with. He knew he was powerful, and strong, and that gave wings to his pride, sometimes it refusing to let him surrender in a fight.

As I followed All Might and the others up the tower where the control room was, I thought this time of Midoriya. He hadn't changed all that much from the canon —even with One for All backing him up, he still looked like a scared bunny when facing against danger... but still managing to swallow it down and use the adrenaline it gave him to protect those he held dear. It was that sort of strength that, in the end, would be what made him even more powerful than Bakugo.

' _Then again, both have the ability to overcome their fears in their own way._ '

" **Now watch and hatch strategies on your own!** "

All Might lighted on the multiple screens on the dark room, all showing different screenshots of the building where the test was taking place in, as well as two cameras filming just outside. Uraraka and Midoriya showed up in one of the latter, while three focused on Bakugo and Iida near what was supposed to be the nuclear weapon —all four of them were with serious expressions on their faces, but the explosive boy was already walking away from his companion, eyes dark with intent.

"Bakugo's leaving?" Someone —I think it was Ashido— commented in disbelief.

"He doesn't seem like someone who works willingly with others." Tokoyami sighed as he shook his avian head, as if reproaching his classmate's behavior.

' _It's more than that..._ ' I scowled deeply as Midoriya and Uraraka entered the fourth floor through the window thanks to the girl's Quirk. Iida had stayed beside the nuclear bomb, guarding it, and Bakugo had disappeared from the cameras' sight —probably having taken one of the non-monitored hallways.

Even having expected it, I almost jumped when the ashen-haired boy suddenly emerged from one of the corners just in front of the 'Hero' pair, immediately throwing an explosive punch at Midoriya and Uraraka. Gasps resounded in the command room as it grazed Midoriya's mask and blew up part of it —fortunately, neither he nor the 'Gravity' girl were injured, having evaded Bakugo in time. The 'Villain' growled as his 'enemies' took a couple steps back.

"That Bakugo's a cheater!" Kirishima shouted in anger at the screen showing the battle, as if they'd hear him from where we were. "An ambush is so un-manly!"

" **Ambushes are good strategy! They are in the heat of battle, after all!** "

"And Bakugo-san's explosive Quirk isn't exactly appropriate to protect something as supposedly delicate as a nuke." I mused out loud, rubbing my chin with my frown still on my face. "Apart from being apparently unable to work with others, he'd chosen on his own accord to be the spearhead of the 'Villains'. Not a bad strategy if you think about it."

Bakugo rushed forwards and threw a wide right swing with his arm, but Midoriya stepped in front of Uraraka and grabbed him by the swinging arm, taking advantage of his momentum to throw him over his shoulder and slam it forcefully into the ground. It didn't do much however, as the ashen-haired boy immediately stood up and, apparently quite pissed, growled something at Midoriya, who shouted in answer.

The others couldn't listen to it, but I knew perfectly well just what the two of them were talking about. How Midoriya had chosen not to become Bakugo's punching bag any longer and his affirmation to become a Pro Hero, whether Bakugo liked it or not. Still, it felt horribly _wrong_ to watch the fight between the two childhood friends, even as Uraraka managed to get away from the explosive boy's dangerous way —even with Midoriya keeping pace and reading through his friend's moves, I knew it was only a matter of time before he-

Yup, Midoriya had retreated away from Bakugo. And _that_ didn't seat well for the guy with a hairy temperament.

"Damn that kid's pissed...!" Kaminari commented with a small whistle. "It's a bit scary actually..."

"The whole time he's gone after Midoriya without regarding Uraraka at all..." Jirou played with her earjacks uninterestedly, her eyes never straying from the scenes showing in the screens. "If this were a real Hero VS Villain situation, Bakugo would be in a serious pinch if Uraraka chose to attack him while he was distracted with Midoriya..."

"But Bakugo seems to be born and bred for fighting. I mean, see how he's moving!" Kirishima pointed to Bakugo's aggressive approach on Midoriya, torso tilted forward and a savage sneer on his face, it widening when he managed to corner Midoriya. "It seems like—!"

Suddenly, All Might grasped a transceiver and spoke into it, obvious worry evident in his voice. " **BAKUGO, MY BOY, STOP THIS! YOU'LL KILL HIM-!** "

 ** _Boooooooom!_**

I couldn't help but to stretch my wings a bit to keep my balance as the whole building shook, the others grabbing on each other to not fall to the floor. Even if the building where the test was taking place was just in the opposite street, it _still_ was at a freaking _two-hundred-feet_ distance away! Were Bakugo's explosions amped with his newly-acquired specs that scaringly powerful and dangerous!?

As the students protested that this was too dangerous to keep on, I noticed in another screen Uraraka trying —and failing to take the nuke away, Iida managing to stop her. But this was coming into a close, and fortunately All Might ignored Kirishima's request to stopping the lesson before Bakugo went mental again —though he _did_ give him a warning to the explosive boy. It still hurt to watch Bakugo finally change his moves so that Midoriya wouldn't read through him, giving him quite a frightful beating that left him panting on the ground.

"Man, Bakugo really won't let it go, huh?" Hanta breathed out, the whole intensity of the fight taking a toll in everyone, even myself.

I gritted my teeth. "This is his way of demonstrating himself to the world..."

I didn't intend for anyone to hear me, but Asui heard me and turned to me. "What do you mean, Hoseki? _Gero_."

My eyes closed as the distant sounds of booming and muffled screams came from across the street.

"From what I can see, Bakugo-san has lived his whole life with gifts, having his ego fed through the years without restrain. No one could step in his way, no one could compare to him. That, added with the fact that he possesses such a flashy and destructive Quirk, just led him to believe that he was above anyone, that everyone was just a pebble in his way." I opened my grey eyes and focused on Midoriya —pointedly ignoring everyone looking at me in silence. "Then we have Midoriya-san. I don't know the whole story, but I assume from the way Bakugo-san diminishes him and ridicules him, that Midoriya-san has been bullied by him."

"B-Bullied?" Hagakure gasped in horror.

"Again, I don't know their story..." I frowned. "But I know the looks of a bully and their victim when I see one. Midoriya-san insists on proving himself to Bakugo-san, and that angers him. Once one becomes a victim, it is really complicated for the bully to see him differently. And that infuriates Bakugo-san."

"So... Bakugo beating Midoriya is just a way to prove he's stronger than anyone?" Kaminari followed my theory with an arched eyebrow.

I nodded, and then smiled when Midoriya's plan suddenly came to life before our eyes, the majority of the class watching wide-eyed as the blast caused by Bakugo made the floor collapse —and Uraraka touch the core. The building came out pretty quickly, as Midoriya collapsed from using his Quirk to evade the worst of Bakugo's explosion, and Uraraka fainted too after being half-buried by the rubble. All Might immediately came out of the room after telling us to wait for him.

"The losing team is fairly uninjured, the winning team is collapsed..." Tokoyami commented after a long silence. "In other words, they lost the scuffle but won the match."

"This was only ever just training though, _gero_." Asui shrugged.

All Might brought the three conscious students (the robotic staff had to bring Midoriya to the nurses' office because of the injuries he'd sustained for using One for All again). I ignored as the Symbol of Peace and (mostly) Yaoyorozu began explaining why Iida came out the one being the one that performed the best in the test and why.

I was much more worried about Bakugo and his mental state. I knew Midoriya would make him come back to his former self in no time (only partially though), but I was preoccupied about what this defeat would mean in the long run, along with the ones that came after. Bakugo Katsuki _needed_ to keep being the arrogant asshole everyone knew, if only for him to keep going and achieving more victories.

" **Alright, the next pair will be _these!_** " All Might brought up two new baseballs from their respective boxes. " **Team I will be the 'Heroes'! And Team B will be the 'Villains'!** "

Shoto, Shoji, Hakagure and Ojiro exchanged looks with one another. They'd understood that this Trial of Battle wasn't going to be precisely a 'walk in thr park'.

" **You already know the drill!** " All Might handed them the maps, the tape and their transceivers. " **You have fifteen minutes to achieve your goals! Now get going!** "

Shoto and Shoji, being the 'Villains', had the advantage of knowing exactly where the core was in the new building All Might set up after the previous one was completely demolished with Bakugo's explosions. So all they had to do is enter and go directly to the room where the fake nuke was, and waited for the 'Heroes'.

"I think Ojiro and Hagakure will have a pretty hard time with their rivals..." Asui murmured worriedly, her finger tapping her chin. Said two students had already entered the building and were climbing their way up with cautious steps, Hagakure still keeping her shoes and gloves on.

"Bah, Hagakure can slip past them and touch the core no problem!" Ashido brushed the matter aside with a wave of her hand.

"I'm not so sure about that..." Kaminari scratched his head. "I mean, Shoji's _crazy_ strong —one punch from him could be as destructive as one of Bakugo's explosions."

Contrary of what most expected —me included, to be honest— the ashen-haired boy didn't answer at the comparison. However, I _did_ notice his eyes darkening a bit.

"Shoto's far more powerful than you think." I disagreed. "He'd most likely end this in seconds, if he knew where they are—"

... It lasted only a second, really. It would've gone completely unnoticed by me if I hadn't paid attention _and_ had the advantage of my future knowledge.

But this...

As soon as Shoji told him where Hagakure and Ojiro were and in what position, Shoto didn't lose any second in dilly-dallying. Stepping away from both his companion and the core they had to protect, he rose his right, _frozen_ foot.

Then stepped on the floor. Softly, a mere touch.

And with that, the _whole-freaking-building_ turned **white**.

Efficient and quick, with no harm to Shoji or the core. Even having known that he'd become far more stronger in the years we'd been separated, seeing the product of his training with Enji was... a _completely different thing._ He was powerful, overwhemingly so —and now, he was a damn _force of nature_.

That... wasn't my cousin.

It was the quickest match we'd seen, and apart from some burns from the ice when Shoto trapped Hagakure and Ojiro in his trap, all four of them were practically uninjured much to All Might's relief. Still, he went down to retrieve them personally and give some moral support to the losers.

"Hoseki-kun, can I ask you something?" Yaoyorozu stepped over to me.

"Hm? Of course, Yaoyorozu-san." I smiled encouragingly.

"You called Todoroki-kun by his given name, not his family name." She tilted her head to the side, her inquisitive eyes boring into mine. "Why is that?"

 _'Wow, and I thought Asui was supposed to be the blunt one._ ' I sweatdropped.

I faked a confused expression. "Oh, I didn't tell you all, right? Shoto and I are family."

...

 _'Better not lose my hearing—!_ '

I clamped my hands over my ears, and not a moment too soon, because—

" _HUUUUUUUUUH!?_ "

" **What's wrong?** "

All Might, having arrived with the other four students, stood at the door with a confused expression.

"Todoroki!" Kirishima all but _flashed_ in front of the ice-boy and grabbed his shoulders. "Is it true!? You and Hoseki are _family_!?"

Immediately, Shoto's mismatched eyes glared at me, and I shrugged with a non-apologetic smile.

"What? They asked."

"We're _cousins_ , yes. Our mothers are twins." Shoto shrugged the redhead's hands off his shoulders and went to stand next to me.

"Huh, you two _do_ look similar." Ashido hummed in curiosity, narrowing her black eyes at both of us. "You have white hair and grey eyes, just like Todoroki-kun's left side."

The rest of the class seemed to agree. Shoto ignored them coldly as I tilted my head to the side with a charming smile.

"Though their personalities are _really_ different."

"Can we talk about familial relations and personalities later, please?" Shoto abruptly asked, incredibly uncomfortable with the whole attention.

" **Alright then, the next pairs are the following! Team H will be the 'Heroes'! Team E will be the 'Villains'!** "

'Team H'? That was Tokoyami and my team! And we had to act as the 'Heroes' against Ashido and Aoyama. Interesting.

Having already known the procedures, we four quickly moved from the building and into the open street, having collected the items we'd need from All Might. Ashido and Aoyama got into the building first after a quick 'Good luck' to us.

After checking that our transceivers worked, I looked down at the map. As I suspected, it had no markings in it, only a rough sketching of the different floors —unfortunately, none ended in a room wide enough for my wings to maneuver comfortably. Oh well —I'd have to relay in my own strength and my Diamond Quirk if things got hairy.

"We'd better strategize and formulate a plan." Tokoyami commented, the map safely tucked away after memorizing it. "Shall we tell each other about our Quirks?"

"Oh, yes. Mine is pretty straightforward." I extended one wing to emphasize my point with a smile. "It allows me to fly and occasionally form potent gusts of wind if I force my wings to their limit, but that's about it. I'm quite strong however. That could get us out of a cinch if needed."

"Yes, I remember that you had the second best record just before Shoji." He nodded curtly, then frowned in concentration.

Just as he did that, a dark claw followed by an avian-like head (pretty much like its master's) emerged from over his shoulder and seemed fused to the cape he wore. I already knew about his Quirk —including how difficult it was to control it in really dark spaces, but still I faked a look of surprise on my face.

"This is my Quirk, Dark Shadow. Basically, it is a "shadow like-monster" that I can materialize from my body and contract it back freely as a sort of extension. Dark Shadow is sentient and capable of speech, being always protective of his master no matter in which state it finds itself. I can use this shadow being for a number of purposes, such as attack, defense, mobility and support. Also, as Dark Shadow can extend very far from my body, I tend to have an advantage in terms of range. Because it can hold objects, Dark Shadow can function as a third arm as well."

I blinked, surprised at how easily he'd given me that much information. He didn't tell me about the light conditions and their effect on Dark Shadow, but the amount of details he'd just given me far exceeded what I expected. It made me feel bad, not telling him about my Diamond Cover Quirk.

 _'No, it's better if I have a card under my sleeve for the moment. The teachers and the Principal may know about this, but no one else._ '

"Well, that was... pretty enlightening. I thank you for the information, Tokoyami-san." I bowed briefly before focusing myself on the task at hand. "Then, with this information, I think we have an opportunity to achieve this. Let me know what you think of this..."

We spent the next minutes planning just outside the examination building, both giving our own opinions and details in this and that, before All Might's voice interrupted us"

" **The 'Villains' have secured the core! 'Heroes', you may fulfill your mission!** "

Thankfully, our plan had already been forged quite nicely. Both Tokoyami and I separated and glanced over at the building —he with his usual intensity, me with a relaxed smile on my face.

"Shall we get going, Tokoyami-san?"

"Yes, let's."

* * *

 **A/N: And here it is. Good news: I may be able to update on Friday or Saturday at the very least. I already have about a quarter of the next chapter written down, and the rest will be a breeze. Or so I hope.**

 **-kylC: Glad I have your approval with how I portrayed the kids! Honestly I feared some of them were a bit OOC. Oh, and I just updated the new chapter in my OP fic, so make sure to check it out and let me know what you think of it too! Toodles~!**

 **-BlueGrey: Thank you so much for your support! Yes he will, though he won't have a visible reaction to Enzeru's presence in the class; no one is supposed to know he's actually Toshinori Yagi after all!**

 **-antisocialFox: Aw, you made me blush~! Here's the update, just for you!**

 **Well, see you guys next chapter!**


	9. Chapter 9

**CHAPTER 9**

 **A/N: Thanks to those who fav/followed my fic, and all anonymous readers!**

 **... Yes, I was supposed to upload on Saturday at the very least. Sorry. Life got in the way.**

 **Speaking of updates, I'll still be updating as often as I can, but it won't be once-a-week any longer. There are very important events coming up in the following months and I need to return to real life. Don't worry, I'll keep uploading... at least once every two weeks. I know, awful waiting, but I'll try to make it up to you guys, promised.**

 **Disclaimer: My Hero Academia belongs to the fabulous author Kohei Horikoshi. I only own a couple OCs.**

* * *

My heart thumped loudly in my chest, a stark contrast with the calm demeanor I stubbornly held up to keep appearances. Me and Tokoyami exchanged a glance in front of the building, and after giving each other a quick nod of 'Good luck', we went our different ways to enter the building.

The plan was quite simple, even a bit insulting — 'Divide and Conquer'. We both knew that Aoyama and Ashido would be choosing the smallest room in the building to hold the core and nullify my wings' usefulness at the same time — it was pretty obvious that if you took out my flight, all I had was my brutal strength and little else, leaving me with a dead weight at my back. I didn't know if they were smart enough to deduce Tokoyami's weakness to light, to be perfectly honest — after all, I'd say that the more light you shine on a body, the darker the shadow and the more powerful it becomes in contrast (Kingdom Hearts, everyone?) — apparently, that wasn't the case in My Hero Academia. Goodbye logic, nice meeting ya.

I _did_ however get a chance to show off my flight skills as I took off with a powerful flap of my wings to get a view of the whole eight-story building, soaring through the skies gracefully as I took sharp attention to the windows and searching for the two 'Villains'. It cost me three precious minutes to survey the whole building before entering through one of the windows in the third floor, my hand reaching for my transceiver.

"Tokoyami-san, do you read me?" Heheh, I always wanted to say that.

A crackle, then... "Yeah, I hear you. Did you see them?"

"The upper floors are empty as we supposed. I couldn't see the 'Villains' or the core anywhere." I strode carefully through the empty hallway as I spoke, grey eyes darting back and forth in search of traps. "It is possible they moved underground."

He went silent again. "... Then we'll proceed as usual. Keep an eye out for the core just in case."

"Alright. Be careful."

He didn't answer, but I didn't expect any from him. I quickly found the stairs and made my way down, still overly cautious.

For some reason I felt too nervous about this whole thing. I knew about Ashido, Aoyama and Tokoyami, and their abilities, and their weaknesses. I knew that most likely Tokoyami and I would end up winning if we did things right. And unlike other events, the 'Trial of Battle' didn't have any everlasting effect on anyone –other than Midoriya and Bakugo, I guess– so changing things wouldn't exactly be a problem.

So _why_ was I feeling so restless?

"Hoseki, I found Aoyama." Tokoyami's voice came through my transceiver, sounding a bit tense. "I'm holding him off, so try to find the core on your own or defeat Ashido to win this."

I couldn't help the grin across my face. "Good luck then."

Assuming they also chose the same strategy as us, I quickly made my way down the stairs and into the basement... which contrary at what I thought, was quite spacious. Not high enough for me to take flight without bonking my head into the ceiling were I tried to take off, but enough for me to extend my 7 and-a-half feet, powerful wings and _not_ touch the walls either side of me. They'd chosen to take out my flight, but didn't consider that my wings could be used as more than just flying.

Ashido stood in the center of the room looking rather smug, the core just behind her and well out of my reach as she stood in the way. Her confident grin just showed that she was sure she'd be able to defeat me no problem, even with the evident advantage of my brute force.

"I'm glad your fought your way down here, Hoseki-kun!" She proclaimed in a... passable malevolent voice, topping it off with an equally evil turn to her grin. "But you'll never get what you want!"

I blinked, taken by surprise. For a Hero aspirant, Ashido could really pass up as a Villain with that act -she only needed to improve her voice.

Then I drew a determined smile on my face, different from my cheeky ones, as I dropped into my fighting stance, wings spreading a little and arms raising up. "Can you back up what you claim, Villain? I'm not precisely easy to defeat."

I saw her visage drop for a moment, hesitation showing for a brief second -she knew I was physically strong, so getting close to me wasn't exactly a good idea. So all she had left was...

"Alright, then TAKE _THIS_!"

It was a good thing I'd been alert to Ashido's every movement, so it didn't really take me by surprise how quickly she re-gathered her thoughts to attack me so suddenly, her acid-coated arm whipping forwards and sending me a good chunk of acid straight at me. It _did_ surprise me the speed of the attack, me having barely time to avoid it.

I didn't know what kind of acid she used, but I certainly didn't want to just stand about and figure it out for myself and in my own flesh.

Flashes of my karate and taekwondo classes -somewhat modified to my own wings- crossed through my mind as I forcefully flapped my wings and shortened the distance between myself and Ashido, who showed a little bit of panic at my sudden closeness and shot a hasty shot of acid at my face. That did nothing to me, though I had to redirect my full-frontal launch and try a sideways attack by launching myself at her left side. She cursed to herself, jumping back and coating herself in acid; that way I wouldn't be able to touch her without getting my hands on her acid. Pretty fast thinking of her. And I honestly didn't know if my new gloves had acid-resistance among their updates.

So now we were pretty much in a stalemate; I couldn't touch her because she was coated in an unknown acid whose effects I wasn't really eager to find out, and she couldn't get close to me and risk getting sucker-punched in the face for her efforts. We stood there facing each other, her still blocking my way to the core, and me blocking the only way out.

A crackle in my ear, then Tokoyami's voice came from the transceiver. "Hoseki, are you still fighting Ashido?"

"I'm afraid so." I smirked, lowering my voice as my grey eyes didn't stray from Ashido. "Are you done with Aoyama-san?"

"Yes. Listen, I noticed something that will help us end this quickly. All I need is for you to continue distracting Ashido."

I frowned. Honestly, being put out from this change of plans threw me off a little, but I needed to learn to trust other people in these kind of situations if I wanted to come out alive from dangers. It still peeved however having unknowns thrown in my plans, threatening to thwart them.

"Alright Tokoyami-san."

There was relief in Tokoyami's voice as he finished the connection and continued doing his thing, whatever the hell it was.

Ashido had taken advantage on the small respite to call his teammate instead of attacking me - a lucky mistake for me, but fatal for her if she were facing a normal villain. She'd quickly realized she was on the losing side but still refused to surrender; raw desperation made her throw a volley of acid attacks at me, hoping to keep me on my toes and out of her way.

And keep me away she did. I had to be creative, using the tiles of the floor to block those acid volleys I couldn't avoid in time, the viscuous liquid spraying the walls around me and the floor beneath our feet in a matter of seconds. I was too preoccupied with the speed of her attacks to notice any kind of effect of the acid on the stone, but I _did_ keep an eye out for when she finally tired herself of throwing her attacks at me -then, I'd get my own chance to finish this. Nothing seemed to change however, when referring to our positions, and she _still_ kept herself between the core and myself, not straying too far from it, by a couple feet at least.

I honestly began admiring her for her tenacity. Even if she knew her desperate situation, she refused to give ground to her enemy and surrender herself so easily.

" **There's only three minutes left, 'Heroes' and 'Villains'!"**

As I barely avoided a new acid ball thrown at my face, my eyes flickered for half-a-second towards the core, mind reeling and wondering where Tokoyami was and what he was doing. Ashido seemed to really be getting stressed by the pressure, her attacks growing a bit more vicious... and discoordinated, which I quickly noticed. Was she growing tired?

And then, I noticed something in the corner of the room; a rectangular space embedded in the wall, covered by a grate, big enough for a small person to get through... and that was being grasped by a dark claw from within.

 ** _Clang!_**

The sudden noise drew Ashido's attention as she whirled around to see the fucking air vent in the upper corner of the room pop open when Dark Shadow busted through it, Tokoyami close behind -he was covered in dust, but looked none the worse to wear. His red eyes flickered from me to Ashido to the core to his left, a mere twenty feet or so separating him from our success.

In the split of a second, comprehension dawned on both Ashido and me, with completely different reactions; a triumphant smile crossed my face, while hers just lost all remaining color, horror and despair etched into place.

In matter of seconds, several events occurred at the same time.

Tokoyami dropped to the ground and launched himself towards the core with the help of Dark Shadow, who boosted his speed quite a bit. At the same time, Ashido quickly took notice of that and threw a gigantic ball of pure greenish acid with a foul smell at him. The ball was fast, and my heart stopped beating for a second when I thought it would impact the bird-boy.

And I... Honestly, I didn't think of the consequences of my actions.

I knew I threw caution out of the wind as I also launched myself forwards, past Ashido, my wings carrying me at a speed that I normally wouldn't reach. I saw Tokoyami widen his red eyes at the incoming attack and myself all but throwing myself between him and the acid -Dark Shadow moving to help me.

My left wing extended instinctively, interposing right between Tokoyami, the core... _and the acid_.

 ** _Splash!_**

At first, for a second, I didn't notice anything strange, other than something gooey and cold sliding down the outer part of my left wing, soaking most of my feathers a filthy green. Then, my wing plummeted to the ground heavily, throwing me along with a surprised yell. I blocked my fall with my hands and elbows, my right wing flapping as my left just laid there, pinned under my own body.

There was no time to analyze the situation -we had to take advantage that Ashido seemed frozen in place!

"Tokoyami-san!" I called out over my shoulder, to the equally shocked boy. "The core, quickly!"

"Right!"

" **THE 'HEROES' TEAM WINS!"**

As All Might's voice proudly proclaimed that, I felt my body sag in the floor with relief briefly, not exactly tired but a bit overwhelmed by the tense situation I'd just faced against Ashido. Judging the groans around me, Tokoyami and Ashido agreed with me, and I heard two bodies slumping to the floor to rest for a few seconds.

I soon shook from my tiredness as I tried standing up... and promptly falling on my ass as my balance failed to support my body. Frowning worriedly, I did it again, the same results happening. That was odd... Normally my wings would help me keep my balance, so why did I keep-?

It was then that I noticed something was extremely wrong.

I couldn't feel my left wing. A great chunk of it, actually; I felt the very tips of my feathers, but the rest... It was just a great chunk of insensitive nothingness. It felt like someone had just blasted a hole into my wing -painless, but undoubtedly missing. My fingers tentatively touched the upper part, lying in the floor in an awkward angle because of my seated position. Nothing. Sure I felt the feathers and the strong muscles underneath, and the heaviness of them combined, but the wing just didn't feel like mine.

"Um... Ashido-san?" I tried keeping my anxiety and fear out of my voice, but some seeped into it nonetheless despite my efforts. "What... does your acid do exactly?"

I didn't doubt she didn't plan to cripple me permanently, but I didn't know the full extent of her powers. Better safe than sorry, right?

... Right?

"Hm? Oh! Nothing permanent, I assure you!" She tiredly walked over to me and wiped off the remaining acid clinging to my wing. "It just numbs your nerves and muscle tissue for a few minutes."

Relief filled me as Tokoyami knelt at my other side.

"That's good to know, but now I'm unable to walk properly." I admitted with a blush. "Most of my balance depends on my wings- without one of them, well... I'm like a cripple."

Tokoyami and Ashido looked at each other in surprise as the bird-boy sighed. "Well, I'll help you out of here."

" **No need**!"

We turned to see Aoyama and All Might standing at the door; the 'dazzling' boy only seemed a bit shaken around, but no injury beside his own grasping at his abdomen with a stiff face. All Might had apparently taken him out of the capturing tape.

Turned out, All Might had chosen to personally pick me up like a baby when he overheard me that disabling one of my wings affected my ability to walk in consequence, while the others just walked on their own feet. It felt degrading a bit, but I admitted that I needed help, and I doubted my classmates had the strength necessary to carry me (my wings were heavy after all) to the control room, where the rest of our class waited for us. Said classmates congratulated us winners for the victory as All Might settled me on the ground, my back propped up by the wall; unable to move my left wing, it sprawled on the floor like a great sheet of white feathers. Some of the girls -mainly Hagakure and Ashido (who felt guilty for paralyzing it in the first place) seemed marvelled at how strong and soft it seemed, bringing a blush to my face as I awkwardly smiled.

All Might had chosen Tokoyami as the one that carried the battle better, and I agreed with him. Not only did he take care of Aoyama no problem, but also had the audacity to figure out where the air vents were and where they lead, bringing us two a great advantage over Ashido. I'd carried my own weight pretty well, but that selfless act of sacrificing my own wing to save my classmate could've ended badly had Ashido chosen to use a different effect on her acid. Ashido and Aoyama also did pretty well, though I learnt that Aoyama had refused to request help from his companion, and Ashido would've had a huge advantage over me if she had just calmed down instead of rushing into action without thinking of the consequences of her actions.

The day, and the battles, carried on as usual and without much jumpscares. My own wing, after a few minutes, regained sensibility and I quickly folded it at my back, relieved the effects wore off without harming the delicate muscle tissues in the wing. I went to stand next to Shoto, looking at the battles, hearing the comments from my classmates with a relaxed smile on my face, and learning new things that the anime and manga didn't show me a lifetime ago. About their Quirks, and their personalities.

I felt really close to them right then.

When the 'Trial of Battle' formally ended and All Might dismissed us to our classroom to keep on with the day, we herded off towards the changing rooms to get out of our costumes, chatting between us in groups of three or four -except Bakugo (who still was pretty quiet for someone as rambuctious as him) and Shoto.

"Hoseki-kun!"

I heard someone call out to me as I was about to follow the others into the male changing room. My head turned to see Ashido awkwardly standing next to the women's changing room, doubt in her black eyes.

"Listen, I... I'm sorry for the number I did on your wing. I didn't think you were going to..." She lowered her head in shame and blushed. "Well, I didn't think you were able to block it with your wing."

I laughed softly, attracting her attention as I scratched my nose. "You have done nothing wrong, Ashido-san. This was a test, and you acted accordingly. Besides..." I extended my left wing, satisfied that nothing felt wrong with the movement. "Now my wing is as good as new. So do not blame yourself, Ashido-san."

' _If I'd used my Diamond Quirk, I wouldn't have been in that situation,_ ' I suddenly thought with widened eyes. ' _My Diamond would've protected me from the corrosiveness of the acid. Man I'm stupid._ '

I could see the conflict in her eyes as she looked between me and the wing I quickly retracted as to not block anyone's way. Suddenly she beamed.

"Well I'll hold on to what you said then! It was worth it too, to see you being carried by All Might-sensei like a baby!"

My cheeks flushed in embarrassment, but I managed to let out a sincere, albeit awkward laugh -it surely _had_ been funny, my 5'9 form along with my wings (one of them being somewhat hauled by Tokoyami and Aoyama trailing along) cradled in the arms of the Symbol of Peace.

"Please, Ashido-san, don't make fun of me like that..." I pleaded with a soft tone, rubbing my head with an awkward smile.

Her giggle and mischievous face didn't exactly fill me with confidence that she'd forget this scene anytime soon.

Classes carried on as usual, with Midoriya finally returning after lunch break with his right arm in a cast and some band-aids in his face. He seemed really surprised at how most of the class congratulated him for the win and began complimenting his strength and how he stood his ground against Bakugo -who sneered at the mentioning of Midoriya standing up against him before scoffing with a grumble under his breath. I also joined the group of course, smiling down at the beet-red boy as he tried to stutter some words at Ashido's close-in face. I really hoped that certain quirk of his didn't leave him.

At the end of today's classes, Shoto and Bakugo were of the first in leaving, absolutely not to my surprise. I gathered my things and noticed Midoriya scramble up after Bakugo -most likely to have that fated conversation that would slowly mold the ashen-haired boy's behavior.

And thus, ended another day at U.A.

* * *

 **A/N: So! That happened. Not sure if I should've changed some things, but man, this battle was difficult to come out with. I lost count of the number of times I wrote and re-wrote the damn fighting scene until I came out with something that was mildly satisfying and not completely out-of-character for the other main characters' personalities.**

 **Next chapter... won't be USJ just yet. Hear me out! I want to relax a bit and try to familiarize myself with everyone in the plot's personalities (basically because I'm finding it difficult to come out with new situations AND manage to stay in-character with everyone). Before going into the fated fight against the Villains, I want to gain more confidence in my writing. So, sorry about that.**

 **-In Brightest Day: Amen, brother. Shoto's a force to be reckoned with, and even knowing he'd grow stronger, Enzeru just realized just how powerful his cousin had grown since they separated five years ago. In the end he didn't use the Diamond Quirk because... well... he forgot. Or rather, I forgot. I know, inexcusable. Sorry!**

 **-Hitler's Moustache (chp 3): Um, how would Enzeru twist the plot when he's not even in the plot yet (or at least in chapter 3 it hadn't begun yet)?**

 **-Hitler's Moustache (2): Maybe I need to explain myself better. Despite Enzeru being PHYSICALLY a teen, his MENTALITY is that of a full-grown adult. He doesn't think like a child, never has, and that's why he thinks the idea of being attracted to his classmates as pedophilia. So in this case, liking 14-year-olds IS pedophilia.**

 **-antisocialFox: Yes he will be! But Enzeru's not one of those who wants to be instant friends with the main character, even if he knows what will happen in the future to them. He prefers to watch things in the distance and intervene when things go awry.**

 **-Heitor: Oh my, that's a long review if I ever see one! Don't worry about writing long reviews Heitor, if they help me improve, then they're more than welcome! I'm always glad to hear everyone's opinions and I encourage everyone to give all their feelings about my fic. So! About your questions, let's go one at a time, okay?**

 **Writing: I'm so glad you like my writing skills! Honestly, being a non-English native speaker, sometimes I find my vocabulary lacking (especially in combat scenes) and I hinder myself in trying to find elaborated phrases to catch the full sentiment of what Enzeru is experiencing. I'm trying my best to self-beta my fic so that you guys won't find any typo that would hurt your eyes (in chapter 7, for examply, I just found that I wrote 'Leaving my dream' instead of 'Living my dream'... Embarrassing... Fortunately it's already fixed).**

 **Enzeru-canon characters interaction: I'm glad that the transition between OCs and Canon Characters doesn't seem abysmal to you. Treating everyone with the same importance is essential to a good writer, I once read. And it's true- the relations Enzeru kept with his mother, his butlers and other OCs throughout his life shaped him in what he was -despite what he's been like before. I'm still worried about making the Canon Characters a bit OOC.**

 **Enzeru's two Quirks: You're totally right, the only beings that has more than one Quirk currently are the creatures named Noumu and no one else (and yeah, Shoto's merged into one, so Half-Hot, Half-Cold counts as one Quirk instead of two). You're not wrong in your assumptions at all. But actually, Enzeru having two Quirks while everyone else has one actually HAS a reason. I won't spoil anything because it will be explained later on in the story (not soon unfortunately, you'll have to be patient), but I'll give you a small, tiny hint: didn't you find weird that the elders already knew that Enzeru was going to have a second Quirk? Take a glance at the first chapter when Enzeru first interacts with the elders.**

 **Enzeru hiding his Diamond Quirk: Honestly, it's just a thing I kept quiet by default, it wasn't a decision properly made. At first I was going to make Enzeru realize that having two Quirks wasn't natural, but when the occasion to show that thought didn't come up (meaning, _I forgot I was gonna do that_ ) then I had to improvise and assume he'd be the type of guy who would deceive his friends to deceive his enemies. He's used to hiding secrets too, so he'd indirectly chosen that one more wouldn't harm him. Much. I'm sorry if this explanation is not really satisfactory.**

 **Hagakure Tooru's nude or not? I... Honestly, I haven't thought of that possibility. Now I'm ashamed of myself, heheh**

 **Enzeru-OC relationships: I'm so glad to hear that! Yeah, I get what you mean. Not only do the main characters shape your OC, but other OCs can as well. Enzeru's mother, Aquila, the butlers, his friends and even the old lady and the clerk played vital roles in Enzeru's life, so I'm too fond of them to let them disappear like that. Most of them will make random appearances in the future (the first four will be present in most of the chapters of course), so I won't let them disappear just yet.**

 **Enzeru-Koe relationship: Aw, thank you! As someone who lost his mother in his previous life, Enzeru promised himself he'd take care of the one he currently had with all his strength. In turn, I elaborated Koe a bit more, even giving her a rational background and giving her a solid personality. Well, none of the butlers are heroes, but they _did_ take the Support Course of U.A to be permitted to use their powers (Akira for therapeutic uses, for example) in benefit of society. Don't worry, soon I'll explain why exactly Koe relented to her son's wishes instead of keeping him from going to U.A.**

 **Enzeru-Shoto relationship: Enzeru realizes Shoto's situation, but is realistic. He knows he can't do anything, legally or otherwise, to stop Enji from doing his brutal training on his son, and that frustrated him. He'd tried to take off that heavy load at the beginning with the help of Gurakumi and Matsuoka, but when Enji forced Shoto to move away, Enzeru kinda realized he can't change everything. 'Growing is suffering', I guess. Yeah, a lot of fics just glue the OC and the Canon Character together in a rather forceful way. I don't like it much, because I see it a bit overprotective. But oh well. Most work out better than I thought.**

 **Phew! There, all the answers you were looking for, Heitor. Oh, thank YOU for pointing out all these things, it's amazing the detail you put to notice everything! I hope I get to read you soon again!**

 **-Hitler's Moustache: He will, just not everytime soon.**

 **-BlueGrey: Thank you so much! I thought it looked rather forceful, but I'm glad you think otherwise (or so I hope). He's not the type to really stand in the sidelines unless he knows he can't do anything to change events, like when Shoto moved away.**

 **-AboveTail: Thank you so much AboveTail. But I'm afraid you'll find the fighting scene a bit... choppy, to say the least.**

 **Well, see you guys next chapter!**


	10. Chapter 10

**CHAPTER 10**

 **A/N: Thanks to those who fav/followed my fic, and all anonymous readers!**

 **So, I got stuck, inspirationally speaking. And also, time-wise speaking. I already told you guys that the upcoming months were going to be hellish to me, so please bear with me and my awfully late updates.**

 **One thing before delving into the story; every writer encourages (or at least should encourage) their readers to give CONSTRUCTIVE criticism, NOT mindless whining that accomplishes only the annoyance (and often discouragement) of the writer, which could result in an even wider delay in the updates. So, if you don't like ANY aspect of my story, please don't just whine about it and give me some input in how I can improve so that it's enjoyable for you guys. I'm NOT an English-native speaker, and I'm not a hundred percent perfect in the language; many things that I try to say usually fall short because I lack the vocabulary I require to convey the full extent of its complexity. If you have any doubts regarding what I meant at this or that scene, feel free to give me a review or PM me directly asking me, just like Heitor does (love your reviews by the way). Guys, I'm human, and I don't bite. Don't fear me so much.** **Just don't give me reviews that only complain about this or that, because it could end in me quite ignoring you or giving a rage-chapter, and neither you nor I want that.**

 **I'm sorry for the rant and the awfully long AN, I didn't intend it to be so lengthy. Thank you for your cooperation and understanding, and please enjoy this new chapter.**

 **Disclaimer: My Hero Academia belongs to the fabulous author Kohei Horikoshi. I only own a couple OCs.**

* * *

"En-kun, breakfast is ready!" Mom came to knock on my door.

"Coming!" I made sure I didn't forget putting my homework in my bag before exiting my bedroom and walking over to the dining table, hands securing my goggles around my head. "Good morning, Mom, Kaito-san."

The giant man turned to me with a smile, the frying pan with delicious-smelling pancakes in his mitten-covered hand. "Good morning, Young Master."

As I sat down, I suddenly noticed there was a member short on our family. "Huh? Where's Akira-san?"

"I asked him to go buy some things from the grocery store." Mom answered, coming over to the table and pecking at the top of my head. "Nothing urgent, but he should be back any moment now."

I relaxed. It was strange for Akira to be late for one of his assignments, but he'd probably been caught in the morning traffic. Neither Kaito nor Mom looked worried though, so he'd probably called in and alerted them of his lateness.

And so we finished our breakfast and got ready for our day. Mom had chosen to take different lessons so as not to get bored in the long morning hours, and that day it was ballet lessons -something she wasn't exactly great at, but managed to overcome her difficulties with enthusiasm. Kaito had medical appointments that day -nothing serious thankfully, just a routine check-up. Akira would stay at home in clean-up duty.

And me... Well, I had classes of course. I had to run at full-speed however because I was about to be late. Maybe I'd buy a bicycle to cover the distance in less time and not be worried in being late any longer.

Fortunately, it was five minutes before the bell rang when I arrived at U.A. However, contrary at what I expected, there were no reporters anywhere. I frowned, but quickly erased it as I spotted Kirishima at the metallic doors, showing his credentials to the robot guarding them. The two of us quickly got inside no problem, chatting and wondering what we would do for that day.

Turned out, the day after the Trial of Battle _wasn't_ the day the famous reporters tried to swarm into the U.A doors in search of answers about All Might's heroic classes. That was good on one hand, because that gave us 1-A students a reprieve of what was yet to come (and me to actually begin to strategize the so-dreaded USJ Villain Invasion)- on the other hand however, the anxiousness wasn't doing good to my stomach and my sleep-deprived body.

For years I'd recollect my (slowly hazier) memories from my past life as best I could and write them down each night before going to sleep, in a diary I kept with me at all times. I was worried someone would steal it however, so I had to form a self-made code mixed with what I could remember from the Quenya alphabet (of Lord of the Rings, yeah, loved the films and the book so-fucking- _much_!) to hide any potentially harmful information. I hoped most of the information written down would become obsolete because of me changing things, but at the same time, I dreaded the moment.

Because I couldn't kid myself. I _was_ going to change things, sometimes whether I liked it or not. Aizawa-sensei getting injured was _not_ an option. Bakugo getting kidnapped was _not_ an option. All Might facing All for One... I wasn't sure I could do anything to change that, but I'd certainly make sure _that_ wasn't the last fight the Symbol of Peace would have in his life.

' _Baby steps, Enzeru._ ' I thought, breathing heavily as I entered the class with Kirishima and greeted them with the eternal kind smile on my face. ' _The next event after the Trial of Battle is the reporters being a pain in the ass, the naming of the class-president and the first 'indirect' contact with the Villains._ '

There was still time for preparations.

Classes went by surprisingly fast that day, as if somehow Fate sensed my dread for the following days. Apart from Bakugo coming back to his usual prick attitude —if a bit somewhat subdued— or the fact that poor Midoriya couldn't take notes because of his cast-covered arm, or _even_ when most of the class looked sore and tired from the Trial of Battle, nothing seemed out of the ordinary. Life as a student, relived through the eyes of an adult like me, turned out to be incredibly boring and dull, in comparison with the My Hero Academia events that... stuck out of the ordinary, I guess you could say.

All in all, everything seemed normal. What a normal student should enjoy perhaps.

"Hm?" I turned in surprise to Uraraka. "Form a study group?"

Whereas I belonged to a study group with Gurakumi and Matsuoka (and occasionally Shoto when we managed to drag him with us), we'd normally just goof around and leave the study proper to the last possible moment. It helped a bit that our grades were pretty good, so we didn't have to actually worry about studying hard; except poor Matsuoka, he got to study hard _anyways_.

But belonging to a study group with Class 1-A students? Somehow it didn't cross my mind, with it being so casual and... I don't know, maybe a bit scholarly? I've always been so centered in the 'fantastic' part of My Hero Academia that I actually forgot that it was still an anime reflecting students living their life through highschool, Quirks or no.

"Well I certainly don't mind accepting the offer, but..."

Uraraka beamed in happiness. "That's great! Thank you for accepting Hoseki-kun!"

I blinked at her enthusiasm. "You're welcome, but why me?"

"Well you were recommended, right? That means you were at the top of your school to be recommended by a Pro Hero! We already asked Todoroki-kun and Momo-chan to join our group!" She glanced over at Midoriya and Iida talking with Shoto just as he was about to leave the class, but judging their expressions, my cousin just rejected their offer. I sighed and drew a fond smile on my face as the two dejected students followed by Yaoyorozu approached us.

"Todoroki-kun rejected us." Midoriya looked as despondent as he sounded, even having some unshed tears in his big eyes.

"Shoto likes doing things his way." I tried to console him with a friendly pat on his shoulder. "Don't look so down about it." He directed a small smile at me, still troubled at not being able to convince my cousin but at least relieved we were there.

"So will it only be the five of us in the study group?" Yaoyorozu looked around. "We can ask around at the rest of the people to see who else wants to join."

"No need, we're coming too!"

Somewhat startled by the sudden voice almost screaming in my ear, I swirled around to see Hagakure, Jiro, Kirishima, Ojiro, and Kaminari all bundled up behind me. The rest of the class, they explained, either outright refused to join or already left before knowing of the study group. The one that shouted, Hagakure apparently, giggled as she stepped away from me.

"That's... a lot of people." Uraraka commented with a small smile, sweatdropping at the amount of people. "Do we even have a place to stay that it's large enough for all of us?"

All of us exchanged glances... and most began talking at the same time. Some proposed going to the nearest library to book a study room, but we were simply too many and we'd make a lot of noise regardless, so that was out of the question. Going to bars or some get-together would lead us to _not_ study at all and get distracted -which mostly Iida and Yaoyorozu disagreed almost completely. And about the houses, well some were too far or too small for everyone to fit in comfortably.

Just then I had a spark of genius. My own house, while a bit far, was actually not too far as to go on bus or train, and was big enough for everyone to fit in. Furthermore, the food Akira and Kaito made was absolutely divine and made enormous proportions for my almost insatiable appetite.

And so, I proposed it to them, extending the invitation to come eat at my place too.

"Really!?"

I was met with a chorus of incredulous and grateful looks from most of them. I smiled, chuckling in amusement.

"Of course." I nodded at how enthusiastic they looked. "I've never had this many people coming over at my house, but I trust there will be space more than enough for everyone to fit in rather comfortably."

"B-but what about your family?" Midoriya frowned in concern. "We're a lot of people and we'll make a lot of noise..."

I paused. True, I didn't think of Mom, Kaito and Akira. Would they be upset at me inviting so many people over to my house? Sure, the butlers wouldn't put any inconvenience, but what about Mom?

"Maybe you should give 'em a ring." Kaminari suggested, miming the motion of calling with his forefinger and thumb.

Thankful for the advice, I smiled as we got out of the building. Because of the use of mobile phones being restricted around U.A, we had to get out of the barrier, and then I called over at home -I admit I had a difficult time remembering the phone number since very rarely I called directly at home.

It was Kaito who picked it up.

" _Hoseki residence._ "

"Ah, Kaito-san?" I piped up, ignoring everyone's looks as I talked. "It's me, Enzeru."

" _Oh, Young Master._ " I distinctively heard the surprise in his voice. " _Is there any problem?_ "

"Well..." And I quickly explained the situation to him. Only when I finally finished speaking, he hummed in deep thought.

" _Hm... Today is Tuesday, so Koe-sama is currently out in her singing and piano lessons. Akira and I are currently making lunch. How many people will be coming over, Young Master?_ "

"Let me see..." I counted my friends, frowning at the amount. "Including me, we're ten."

" _Then there is no problem. Please bring them over if you wish._ "

My eyes widened in surprise, a confused frown showing on my face. "Hold on a second, isn't it an inconvenience to you?"

" _Not at all, Young Master. In fact I'm delighted to make food for so many friends of yours. Furthermore, we're your butlers; you order, we obey. All we have to do is make sure that they feel comfortable in our abode._ "

Somehow, that sentence saddened me. Sure they were only my butlers, but I considered them my family despite of that. That they showed me this much deference without taking into account their discomformity to my decisions irked me a bit. I mentally resolved into talking with both of them at the end of the day.

"Then we'll be coming over in an hour."

" _As you wish, Young Master._ "

I hung up, and smiled at my intrigued friends. "You're all invited to come and eat if you wish so."

"For real!?" Kaminari and Kirishima exclaimed at once, followed by most of the group. At my nod, they began texting and/or calling their own families to inform them of the impromptu plan.

"Are you sure it won't be an inconvenience for your family, _gero_?" Asui tilted her head to the side, touching her lip with a finger, having finished talking with her own family.

We quickly went on our way, me leading the way to my house at a much-slower pace that I'm used to so that Akira and Kaito had time more than enough to make the food for the rest of us.

"My butlers approved it, and my mother is currently out in her singing lessons, so she probably won't be back until later in the afternoon." I explained to her with a smile.

"Damn, I always forget you're filthy rich." Kirishima whistled at my mentioning of my butlers.

"Well they're more my family than my butlers despite their insistence." I chuckled, though his comment did hurt me a bit. Being rich always attracted the wrong attention back in junior high. "Anyways, as long as they approved, then all is good. Fair warning though, I hope you're famished because they'll probably cook for thirty people at least."

"No worries!" Kirishima boasted. "I'm as hungry as a starving lion right now!"

 ** _Growl~_**

A growling sound came from his stomach, confirming his statement and making all the others roar in laughter at how miserable the red-head suddenly looked. I just kept smiling and occasionally laughing when needed, and also answering questions when asked, but otherwise just kept to myself.

At least until we finally arrived to my apartment.

"I-is this your whole house, Hoseki-kun?" Ojiro pointed the enormous building with a shaky finger.

"Oh-no-no, I live in the last floor." I answered, putting an amused smile on my face but unable to feel the amusement. In a way, being rich got me through many years of solitude because of people wanting to be my friend because of my wealth and not because of who I personally was. Boasting about my richness always left a bitter taste in my mouth.

We had to get in the elevator in groups because the maximum capacity was ten people and Shoji and I occupied a lot of space -also I felt claustrophobic with so many people in a small place, squishing me against the walls.

" _Man_ , even the hallways look luxurious..." Kaminari commented as he looked at the hallways, dressed in an expensive-looking paintwall and some artistic pieces that I knew only costed half the price of the originals... and still costed a whole fortune. "You must be swimmin' in money in here, huh, Hoseki?"

I awkwardly chuckled, searching for my keys. "Well I try not to think of my family's wealth as much as possible. It makes me feel uncomfortable."

I swear I felt someone's piercing eyes digging in the back of my head, but quickly shrugged it off when I opened the door. "I'm home!"

Akira and Kaito were already waiting at the kitchen door, both dressed formally and with aprons around their waists. Akira even had Mom's pink mittens.

"Welcome home, Young Master." They both greeted with a bow at the waist.

I smiled in greeting and quickly stepped aside, letting the others inside and take their shoes off. My friends just stood in the doorway however, taking in what little they saw of my home from the entrance with eyes as wide as plates and mouths agape. It was only later than Kirishima's stomach reminded him and the rest of the mouth-watering aroma coming from the kitchen.

"What's that delicious smell!?" Hagakure exclaimed.

Akira smiled, obviously flattered by her enthusiastic exclamation. "That young Miss, is roasted beef with a bed of potatoes and carrots, along with a caprese salad, pesto pasta and an assortment of desserts and fruits for your delight." He topped that off with a grandilocuent bow.

"It really sounds delicious." Yaoyorozu commented, a blush covering her cheeks as her stomach loudly rumbled too.

"There's a bit of everything if anyone has allergies." I explained as they all took slippers to put on from the cupboard near the door.

More awing sounds as they finally stepped into the living-room/dining room area, gigantic and bright, with small details like photos and plants (that Mom personally tended). The wide TV hung almost unused atop the chimney.

"This place is huge!" Ojiro looked around.

"Is that a **Kuhn Bosendorfer Grand Piano**?" Jiro suddenly noticed the great piano near the balcony, unconsciously gravitating towards it with a glint of admiration in her eyes. "It's got the decorated bench with 100,000 jewels polished by hand-cut glasses as the rumors say! That's insane!"

As I indicated them to leave the handbags in the living room atop the sofas, I smiled awkwardly at her. "Well it was a present for my mother from the elders. We just couldn't throw it out."

"Why would you!? This is one of the most expensive pianos in the world!" She seemed to notice how agitated she sounded, because she forced a cough before brushing some invisible specks from her skirt, awkwardly. "Though I'm more interested in rock than classical music."

"I'm afraid my mother would tell you more about music than me. I have absolutely zero talents regarding music." I laughed while rubbing the back of my head.

"That's perfectly alright, Hoseki-san! Admitting one's weaknesses is a symbol of strength and wisdom!" Iida puffed out his chest and lifted his glasses farther up the bridge of his nose, his lenses glinting in the sunlight.

Midoriya sweatdropped with an awkward laugh, sitting very stiffly in the comfy sofa, Iida and Kaminari at both his sides. I sat in my couch alone in front of the chimney (where I would spend many nights reading at the light of the fire), Hagakure enjoyed the massage chair with a delighted grin; Ojiro, Yaoyorozu, Kirishima and Jiro took over the last sofa, squeezing a bit but still managing to stay comfortable.

"It's best that we sort out our homework before eating." Yaoyorozu proposed, taking out her agenda with a business-like expression. "That way, we would be far more efficient when we begin to study."

"I agree wholeheartedly, Yaoyorozu-san!" Iida nodded enthusiastically.

The others however didn't seem to agree, much to my silent amusement. Most were far more attentive to what I had at home or the food Akira and Kaito were cooking than what our teachers told us to do at home. It was after much insistence from the two nerds (four if we counted Midoriya and myself) to at least cooperate in sorting out our homework as to make this more amenable and leave some time to relax after homework.

Lunchtime came surprisingly quickly, and to much delight from my hungry classmates. It was truly a different sight from what I was usually accustomed to, seeing them so boisterous and loud, trying to rob from each other's plates. At first they all behaved perfectly well, perhaps feeling a bit subdued with all the correct aura the house and my butlers exuded, but soon there was yelling, pushing and pulling, and even one or two times a plate or a vase almost fell to the floor. Luckily we weren't using any of the valuable cutlery, or else the earful I'd get from Mom and the butlers would be really serious.

And laughter, lots of laughter.

I'd been raised with an aura of gentle seriousness, a certain behavior expected from me at all times. I had to be proper, showing off my social status even before I opened my mouth. Back when I was still Peter Moonhill, I was much freer in expressing myself, even if only with my irate raging rather than laughter. I expressed everything I wanted with my fists and my feet, fighting when my words failed to come out. As Hoseki Enzeru, however, I became much more restricted emotionally speaking, because I had to hide everything behind a blank mask of fake politeness or cold indifference.

That summed up with the fact that I was an adult who pretty much _forgot_ to be a child and, well...

It sucked.

The four top-tier students (Iida, Yaoyorozu, Midoriya and I) had distributed ourselves so that we got to teach the subjects we had more proficience on to the others. I tried to help with Biology and Geology, my personal favorite subjects, Yaoyorozu with English and Mathematics, Iida with Chemistry and Physics, and Midoriya with Contemporary History and Ethics, Politics and Economy (though personally the latter had a really well-rounded knowledge of every one of the subjects and could help with either one). I'd hoped (as well as Iida and Yaoyorozu) that during study time the boys would be at least less rambuctious and more subdued in order to concentrate in the subjects, but alas, that was wishful thinking. I swear I never saw Midoriya get so flustered trying to explain Kaminari about the differences between Japanese modern society before and after the first Quirk manifested. The poor blonde didn't seem to get just how police worked back in the day to catch the evildoers without Quirks.

From time to time, Akira or Kaito would approach us and ask if they wished anything to drink or eat, offering biscuits and/or any sort of refreshment. I wasn't sure about it since they always kept their emotions hidden behind a iron wall, but maybe they felt surprised at how much feelings I expressed in the company of my friends.

Soon it was time for most of them to leave. Yaoyorozu, Hagakure and Jiro left together, explaining they had activities on their own, while Kaminari, Ojiro and Kirishima left after having all the doubts they had thoroughly explained. Iida, Uraraka and Midoriya stayed a bit longer.

We were in the middle of explaining Uraraka about the different artistic movements during the 20th century and their differences when I heard keys at the entrance. The four of us, Kaito and Akira turned towards the door in time to see Mom entering.

"I'm home!" She exclaimed, her voice a bit rugged up.

"Welcome home, Ma'am." Both Akira and Kaito stood up from the dining table (where they'd been sipping tea) and bowed politely at her.

"Hi, Mom." I smiled up at her as she approached us.

"Hello sweetie." She kissed the crown of my head and looked over to my friends, who'd suddenly gone silent at her sudden entrance. "Kaito-san and Akira-san told me about you bringing over some friends."

"Yes." I turned to the others as the three stood up with nervous expressions on their faces. "These are Iida Tenya-san, Uraraka Ochaco-san and Midoriya Izuku-san. They're my classmates too."

"Nice to meet you, Hoseki-san." The three of them intoned at the same time, bowing politely -Iida with a bit more impulse than needed.

Mom giggled as her cheeks blushed. "My, how polite. It's very nice to meet you too." And returned the bow, albeit shallower than my friends'.

As she got a cooling cup of tea from Akira, I turned to my friends. "Would you mind if we moved to my bedroom as to let my mother rest in here? It's not as big or as comfortable as the living room, but at least we'd be comfortable enough..."

"Oh, it's no problem at all!" Midoriya got adorably flustered as he waved his hands frantically, while Uraraka and Iida nodded in tandem.

"Of course, we'll try not to disturb you anymore, Ma'am!" Somehow it amused how Iida could _bow_ and collect his books and suitcase at the same time in his hastiness to leave my Mom to rest.

Judging the giggle she let out, she also found it amusing. "Don't you worry, you're no disturbance at all. Akira-san and Kaito-san will see to whatever you need."

"Thanks!" Uraraka beamed past her awkwardness.

Once we got to take refuge in my bedroom, the three of them seemed to slump in the floor, ignoring the chair and king-sized bed I had. I just lifted an inquisitive eyebrow as they seemed to relax.

"You never told us your mother was so beautiful and lady-like, Hoseki-kun." The Gravity-girl breathed as if in awe... and was that a bit of jealousy?

I chuckled as I took a spot on the floor between Iida and Midoriya, completing the circle and setting down my own books in the middle.

"Mom lived half her life learning how to behave properly before distinguished people, as did I. But yes, she is quite beautiful." My smile turned really warm as I thought of those secret moments I shared with my mother.

The three friends exchanged a look and also smiled. Later on I assumed that was one of those anime bonding moments.

It was some hours later (it took Midoriya's mom to give him a call) that we finally put a stop to our study sessions, satisfied by our advances and that we were able to share our doubts and knowledge. We also shared quite a few laughs and not less moments of frustrated groans, of course, but overall it was quite an enjoyable moment, that also served for us to bond us together, closer than merely classmates.

In my case, I was secretly glad that I didn't have to force the situation and become friends with the main protagonist just because.

I insisted on accompanying them down to the building's door, inwardly not wanting to separate myself from them so soon. I genuinely had a lot of fun (even if the purpose of the gathering had been more about studying that a mere get-together to know everyone a little better), and I didn't want the day to end so soon.

"It was good, hanging out like this." Uraraka smiled as the four of us stood in front of the apartment building, them carrying their bags. "We should repeat that!"

"I agree!" Iida nodded, before straightening. "We should strive to forge deep bonds with each of our classmates to become the best Pro Heroes in the future!"

I just looked at them and chuckled under my breath, amused at my friends' enthusiasm. A familiar shiver indicated that someone was watching me attentively, and I looked to the side to see Midoriya pensively looking at me; his uncharacteristically serious gaze turned suddenly timid as he noticed me returning the look with a puzzled question in my eyes.

"Ah! Uh... Eheh..." He blushed and rubbed the back of my head, caught red-handed in his stare.

"Is there something on your mind, Midoriya-san?" I cocked my head to the side, letting my smile show I wasn't perturbed or pissed at his stare.

He obviously seemed to struggle with his thought, obviously having expected me to dismiss his opinions. Uraraka and Iida, noticing our exchange, quickly shut up about 'bonds between classmates' and 'becoming Pro Heroes together', also curious at what the usually quiet boy was thinking about.

"I-it's nothing!" He quickly looked aside. "I just wanted to thank you for inviting us into your house, Hoseki-san!"

"That's right!" Uraraka immediately bowed deeply with a disarmingly charming smile, ignoring my questioning looks at the three of them. "Thank you so much for inviting us over at your home, Hoseki-kun!"

"Please send our thanks to your mother and your butlers." Iida bowed too.

I swiped my gaze over them, eyebrow raised, knowing they knew I _didn't_ fall into their distracting ruse. I felt tempted to ask them directly, to out the three off their games -I didn't like secrets after all- but that wasn't my style. Or at least it wasn't Hoseki Enzeru's anymore.

 ** _-Who am I?-_**

That sudden thought startled me, perturbing and ominous. The beginning of an inkling memory dawned in me, but vanished when I tried to grasp it. Behind left only the remnants of the uncomfortable sensation that I forgot something.

Something important.

I forced myself to smile, to ignore the awkward pressing feeling. "It was my pleasure, please come back any time. I don't get many visitors often, I'd like to invite you over many more times, if you wish to."

"That's fine by me." Iida nodded, the other two imitating him. Maybe it was only my impression, but they seemed to deflate in relief at not being discovered in whatever thought they had.

We quickly told our goodbyes to each other as they went their separate ways, soon leaving me alone standing in front of the apartment, the moonlight shining above my head. Shaking my head, I turned and went back inside the building.

I had a really fun time with my friends, bonding with them in different ways than just going through danger with them. I got to see different aspects of my classmates that I wouldn't discover any other way, and saw that My Hero Academia really wasn't just Quirks and fights to save one's life. I felt content, more united to my classmates, and that made me extremely happy.

But then, _why_ did I have this uneasy feeling gnawing in my gut?

* * *

 **A/N: Yes. Here I leave it. I'm aware this will probably disappoint many readers (I'm not entirely satisfied either, even having had three weeks to write this down). But at least I managed to get some work done before delving into the official plot again (and changing it to my heart's delight).**

 **-antisocialFox: Thank you so much Fox! Sorry, this chapter is just a filler so that my thoughts can reorganize and figure out what to do. And first we have the Class President election; it'll be fun, that I'll assure you.**

 **-Heitor: Hello Heitor! Glad to read you again. Thank you so much for being so understanding, although I'm aware this chapter isn't really good. Now I wonder if I should've just kept going with the plot and added filler chapters later in the story. Oh, so you want to begin writing? That's an awesome idea! I'll support you 100% bud! And now, about your input:**

 **Enzeru hiding his full potential: That's what I plan to do when USJ comes around.**

 **Enzeru's two Quirks: Damn man, you have such lively imagination! But for the sake of mystery and the readers' curiosity, I won't deny or approve either of your ideas (though I admit that they're really, REALLY good ones, and valid too). Keep those theories in mind though, just in case.**

 **Mizeru/Enzena: To be honest, I didn't think of that. It could be passed on as platonic love later on in the story to keep those interested in romance mildly satisfied at least. There IS a future pseudo-romantic situation later on in the story (though I haven't decided just when I will implement it) so that's another thing readers can be satisfied.**

 **Enzeru's worry about the plot: Heheh, Enzeru doesn't worry THAT much about the plot yeah, but it's just because there hasn't been any trandescental event that would cause him to panic yet xD Nah, just kidding. Enzeru is really a pretty chill guy that normally tries to live with what he has and tries to change what he doesn't like. Things that are out of his control well... It's just not in his first priorities concerning the plot. He won't panic like that, I assure you.**

 **Fighting scene: I was pretty disappointed in myself when I saw how awfully short the fighting was, but after giving it much thought and re-reads I ended up with the conclusion that it was just a fight in which Enzeru didn't give his all (because honestly there wasn't a reason to, at least in his eyes), and he's aware that while being powerful, his strength wasn't near Bakugo or Shoto's level. He's satisfied with his level, and that can be dangerous later on. Yes, I assure you, USJ will be different.**

 **Names and thoughts: Yeah, I found important the fact of emphasizing Enzeru's thoughts and how he talks, because they're different. Whereas he talks like a mild-mannered kid with an obviously noble background, in truth he still thinks like the thirty-something year-old ADULT that curses and sees things much more cynically than a child would.**

 **Student's life: Seeing as Horikoshi-sensei never really gave any indication of club activities existing and such, it's really difficult to me to create it out of the blue. I still plan on showing it later on in the story, just not yet because they've practically begun with the school year and there isn't much to do this early. But I'll definitely hold on to your thoughts and implement them later on in the story.**

 **I thank you a lot for your criticism and inputs on how to improve my story, Heitor. Not like others *glare at Guest king gilgamesh* I hope to read you again real soon!**

 **-Hitler's Moustache: Maybe it doesn't make sense to you, but his mentality is that of a thirty-something year-old guy. To his standards, even if he has the appearance of a teen, he's an ADULT, and as such, he can't feel attracted to a girl that is several years mentally younger than him. I'm sorry if it doesn't make sense to you, but that's the reason I'M giving to NOT give any kind of romance to this fic other than using the typical card of 'being asexual'. And while pedophilia is not illegal (you won't get arrested with liking pre-pubers), the chances of offending society are ridiculously high- and it still is considered a mental disorder. Other people wouldn't see it as pedophilia, but Enzeru himself would, and he doesn't want to stoop as low as them.**

 **-In Brightest Day: Glad you approve of my idea of forging deeper bonds with the students! Though it somehow felt... empty, right? Let's see if something is wrong with Enzeru later on, shall we? Ooh, teasing from his mother? That's a really good idea! I'll think of it as we advance through the plot!**

 **-azkan.akko: Glad you liked it!**

 **-king gilgamesh: ... Honestly, as all of your reviews practically say the same thing, I'll just answer you in a single review (though I certainly don't know why I bother myself).**

 **First: I'm not an English native speaker, so if muscle atrophy isn't what was supposed to happen when you practically overexert your muscles beyond their capability then I'm sorry for not finding the correct term. Point it out so I won't make the same mistake again, but there's no need in being so annoying. And no, that wasn't the word I first wanted to say, but I won't insult you out of respect, which you currently lack by the way.**

 **Second: of course he's been coddled and is condescending, he's been practically raised in an environment where he could have ANYTHING he wanted, even regarding his training. He hasn't been in a life-or-death situation and as such he feels like he's in control of everything, so of course he wouldn't find the need to train to his limits. The fact that he saw in the anime what Shigaraki was capable of is COMPLETELY DIFFERENT of how he'll face the situation first-hand.**

 **And third, the most annoying complaint: ENZERU WAS A HUMAN THAT WAS SUDDENLY THROWN INTO AN ANIME OF ALL THINGS. There are thousands of different ways to face such changes. For Enzeru, his way of coping with it is becoming a real character, like one of the anime he always saw. Call him fake, immature, plastic or whatever you like, but there's a reason why he's acting that way. You don't like it? Then go away, but don't make me and the readers lose our time, because THAT'S annoying.**

 **-kylC: Thank you so much for your understanding. To be honest I'm not satisfied in the least with this chapter (I may even delete it later in the story because honestly it makes me cringe). Don't worry if you're late, it'll always be there for you all to read!**

 **Well, see you guys next chapter!**


	11. Chapter 11

**CHAPTER 11**

 **A/N: Thanks to those who fav/followed my fic, and all anonymous readers!**

 **Disclaimer: My Hero Academia belongs to the fabulous author Kohei Horikoshi. I only own a couple OCs.**

* * *

 **~MIDORIYA'S POV~**

"If you don't eat your breakfast, you'll be late to class, Izuku."

Said boy snapped his gaze up from the mostly-full plate, startled, when her mother suddenly chided him. Her eyebrow was raised in disapproval as she held her own bowl of rice and chopsticks close to her mouth.

"Uh, ah, sorry!" And began wolfing down breakfast at a blinding speed.

"Be careful, not _that_ fast! You'll choke on your food!"

As if agreeing, the rice began clomping on his throat, making the poor boy cough and gulp down some water. His mother sweatdropped and rose from her chair to give him a few firm pats in the back.

"Honestly, I know you normally space off, but this is getting ridiculous." She ruffled his deep green hair affectionally before returning to her seat, picking up her chopsticks again. "So, what were you thinking about?"

"Oh, it's not that important..."

"Really?" The plump woman lifted a skeptical eyebrow. "Because it's not really _that_ usual that you space out without a reason that you consider 'not important'."

Izuku opened his mouth, then closed it again, frowning. He knew his mother wouldn't let go of the topic that easily. Putting down his chopsticks, he let out a sigh.

"It's just... is is that hard to be rich?"

"Huh?" Confused, the woman blinked in confusion at that non-sequitur comment. "What do you mean?"

"Remember I told you the winged boy we met back at the train station was in my Hero Class?" She nodded, brows furrowed in both confusion and concentration. "Well I've been trying to meet him, to know him better. But..."

His frown deepened, trying to find the correct words for those complicated feelings inside him. Inko didn't interrupt his thoughts, as she always did when her son was trying to wrap his head around something particularly complicated.

"It's not that he's a bad person. Not at all, he's really kind, and never loses his temper, and he's really mature... But his behavior seems fake... Like he's just an actor in a movie."

"Hmmm..." Inko pursed her lips in a thoughtful expression, thinking intensely for a few minutes before understanding crossed her face. What she understood, her son didn't know. Then, she showed an expression he's seen many times in his life, back before he got All Might's power... "Oh."

The boy's eyebrows knitted together, chopsticks lowering as he saw her facial expression. Like a particularly unpleasant flashback, it reminded him of his childhood, as he grew up without any Quirk despite his dream of becoming a Pro Hero like All Might... At that time, she'd watch her son with those same eyes, face scrunched up in that expression.

 _Pity._

He didn't understand– his mother was pitying Hoseki-san? But why?

"Mom?" Worried about her prolongued silence, he tilted his torso towards her.

She blinked awake of her musing and smiled, but Izuku could still see the sympathetic glint in her eye that somehow shrouded her smile.

"I'm sorry, Izuku, it's just..." She let out another sigh and brought a hand up to her cheek. "Poor child."

"Huh?"

"You know he comes from a prestigious family, right?" At his confused nod, she continued with a soft voice. "Well, more often than not, children born into those families are pressured by high expectations and expected to act in certain ways that would please their family."

"Well, yeah, I kinda figured that out on my own..."

'But is that the only thing?'

Seeing as Inko wouldn't say anything else, the boy couldn't help but mull over his thoughts as Inko ushered him to get ready and on his way to school. He considered it was really possible that Hoseki's usual closed-off behavior was because of his social status and his education among a noble family– but that didn't really explain his looks whenever he thought no one would notice.

Izuku only caught it a few times himself, but those moments were... enlightening.

Hoseki analyzed everything.

It wasn't necessarily a bad thing per se, but sometimes he'd get such a _scarily intense_ look whenever he seemed to be deep in thoughts... It seemed as if he was a completely different person.

'Could it be that he has multiple personality disorder?' Izuku scrunched up his face in thought, gaze on the ground as he slowly walked to the school. 'No, I'm not sure about that... Though he really acts as if there were two different people... One that shows to us, and another that he keeps secret...'

In a way, it scared him. Which one was the real Hoseki Enzeru?

Just then, Izuku suddenly noticed that he was quite close to U.A, but... Something was off. There were too many people standing in front of the main entrance of the protective walls. There were some students among the people, but the majority seemed to be adults carrying what looked like cameras and microphones–

Wait... Were those reporters?!

"Deku-kun, good morning!"

Startled, Izuku couldn't help but yelp as he jumped almost a foot in the air, the unexpected –but familiar– voice of Uraraka exploded from behind him. Heart beating fast in his poor chest, the timid boy turned slowly towards her and felt his face burn as once again he witnessed her huge and carefree smile, not noticing she had startled him.

"O-oh, Uraraka-san, g-good morning..."

Her smile widened even more and skipped to his side, noticing for the first time the clutter of people blocking the way into U.A. "Wow, that's a lot of reporters..."

"Yes..." Izuku somehow managed to control his wild heartbeats and looked over at the group of people just swarming the entrance with a worried frown. "I have to go see Recovery Girl before classes, but at this rate it'll be impossible..."

Uraraka also frowned, but then perked up when she noticed the people's attention being grabbed by something... or rather some _one._ "Hey, isn't that Hoseki-kun?"

Izuku blinked as he also noticed the tall, winged boy just arriving at the scene and get practically _barrelled_ by the reporters, until all they both could see were the tips of his wings and the upper portion of his white hair peaking over the people's heads. Neither of them could see him well from where they were, but the boy suddenly had the impression that he seemed to handle the crowd rather well.

"Wow... He has them dazzled..." Uraraka breathed with... Was that admiration? She had some color on her cheeks, but considering they always had a red patch on them Izuku wasn't sure if she was actually blushing or not. "He's really amazing. He's smart, considerate, kind, strong..."

She sighed, while her companion blinked. Hoseki-san was really famous around girls, huh.

"But..." She frowned as some reporter laughed at some comment Hoseki-san made. "I don't know, I think there's something else about him... Something that he doesn't want anyone to see..."

'So I'm not the only one with that impression...' Izuku frowned once more, looking back at the winged boy, who got some space and was actually visible for them. He was inmaculate of course, from his neatly-combed white hair to his pristine feathers in his wings, but there was some kind of edge in his smile as he glanced around. He seemed to notice the two of them though– his smile seemed turn slightly more genuine and he nodded politely at Izuku and Uraraka, subtly enough that the reporters didn't spot them.

"Maybe I'm just imagining it though..." Uraraka smiled as she waved back at Hoseki, then turned to her friend with a dazzling smile. "C'mon, we should take advantage of Hoseki-kun distracting most of the reporters."

Without warning, she grabbed his arm and, ignoring his stutters and his blushing face, began dragging him towards the gates.

This day had started off really weird.

* * *

 **~HOSEKI'S POV~**

'Maybe I shouldn't have just let them swarm me like this.' I sweatdropped as dozens of microphones shoved themselves in my face, eager reporters clinging onto my every word.

I hadn't forgotten about the 'reporter incident' happening just before Class President Election, but I hadn't quite expected to be _this_ crowded. I didn't know if the reporters recognized my surname as belonging to one of the noble families in Japan, but I made sure it didn't slip up just in case. And about their seemingly endless questions about All Might... I just chose to go around in circles, offering ambiguous answers without actually giving them any _useful_ information- no sense in giving the villains some leeway and get to know how the Symbol of Peace worked, right?

And speaking of the villains, shouldn't their leader be around?

Taking advantage of the reporters' momentary distraction, I scanned my surroundings in search of said leader, but instead I found Uraraka and Midoriya a few feet away, paralyzed in place. I offered them a kind smile and a polite nod, Uraraka beaming at me as she waved with her hand, all the while commenting something to Midoriya before grabbing him by the arm and dragging him towards the door.

"So, returning to the topic at hand..." The blonde reporter who seemed to have a crush on the Symbol of Peace grabbed my attention once more. "Could you give us any input on All Might's educational abilities?"

I slipped my fake-polite smile back on as I turned towards her, my patience beginning to wane at her insistence. "I'm afraid I cannot describe his full capabilities as he just began teaching us and the school period has just begun."

"But surely you can give us some indications at what kind of subjects he teaches!" The woman insisted, all but thrusting her microphone in front of my face. I thought I saw some reporters trying to bug Bakugo into answering their questions, but quickly retreated at his threatening sneer. "Can't you at least tell us if he's being a good teacher at all?"

"Comparing him with other teachers seems unjust to me, to be perfectly honest." I ruefully smiled, noticing with perverse glee how her patience was slowly ebbing away too, her smile turning into a slow rictus. "Each has their own strengths and weaknesses regarding teaching."

"And which are All Might's strengths according to _you_?"

I faked a meditative face, not really willing to say anything. I was saved from answering though, when I heard a familiar male voice, drowsy and apparently fed-up with this ridiculous situation, call out to the reporters. When my attention turned to the voice, so did the reporters', who turned to the barrier doors to notice Aizawa standing there and ushering some people away.

"GIve us some insight on All Mig- CUT THE FEED! Why don't you get a little more presentable, dude!?" Exclaimed someone, presumably a reporter close enough to the door to actually ask him that directly.

"The man is off-duty right now." Aizawa waved the reporter away with his typical deadpan expression, grabbing my shoulder and dragging me with him. "You're interfering with our lessons here, so _kindly_ vacate the premises."

As the reporters protested behind us, we calmly crossed the door threshold, knowing they couldn't follow us with the sensors there to stop them. He let me go as soon as we weren't swarmed by the people, and I turned to him to tell them something-

 ** _!_**

-when a suddenly violent shiver crept up my spine. I stopped in my tracks and turned towards the closed door, something Aizawa noticed of course.

"What's wrong?" He droned out, stopping too but not turning towards me as I continued scanning the door, as if I could see beyond it with some kind of X-ray Quirk.

I hesitated. Should I give a hint of the villains' presence there and potentially change the outcome at the USJ? I didn't actually know _how_ they got the memo of All Might performing the Rescue Mission class there instead of at the main building, but the infiltration attempt later on that day was surely their doing.

"... I felt someone's eyes on us..." I decided to chose to be ambiguous, frowning at the door. "Someone not exactly friendly..."

Even with his usual passiveness, I hoped I managed to catch Aizawa's attention and alert him enough to raise security. Or maybe not, and everything would continue on as usual.

"... We should get back to class." His footsteps began getting farther away. Nothing in his voice pointed out what his opinion of this was or what he would do.

I shouldn't feel defeated after giving him such a vague indication of something going wrong. I tried to convince myself that considering that I shouldn't know _everything_ , my little actions should at least stir up some kind of reaction in others. Still, a small sigh left my lips as I turned away from the door and began following the shady teacher to our classroom.

The walk was quiet as we both reached the classroom's door and we both got inside, the people inside quickly taking their seats and acting all correctly. I also took my own seat as Aizawa walked up to his desk, not bothering with a 'Good morning' before plunging right into the matters that concerned him.

"Hope you're rested from the other day's Battle Trial." He showed a shuffle of papers in his hand. "I took the liberty of looking at your marks and evaluation. Bakugo," he called first to the explosive boy, "stop acting like a 7-year-old kid. You're wasting your own talent."

Most of the class expected him to lash out at the teacher, but all he said in a low growl was: "... I know."

'Midoriya's fight with him, along with the presence of Shoto and the rest of the class, has served to make him see that he's not the only talented one,' I sneaked a peek from my seat to the ashen-haired boy as Aizawa berated Midoriya. 'Hopefully it will power-up his determination of becoming stronger without falling into cockiness again.'

"Hoseki." I blinked, gaze snapping up towards the teacher. "This is not a game. If you don't give your all into your training, you won't be able to pass the classes. In a villain attack, that can end up with your death."

All Might had written down _that_ about my performance? That I didn't give my all in the Battle Trial? I frowned, confused. Sure it was just training, not a life-or-death situation, but that didn't mean that I was going into the fight half-

... Oh.

 _Ooooooooh._

I widened my eyes in realization, suddenly seeing clear what Aizawa was implying without telling directly to the whole class.

He was talking about my _other_ Quirk, the Diamond Quirk. Keeping it secret from the others could end up with me killing myself. I closed my left hand in a fist.

"I expect a better performance from now on." Aizawa glared deep into my eyes, the reddening in his schlera somehow making the glare even more menacing.

"... Yes, sir."

It was out of my character, speaking up with such seriousness and no trace of my usual gentle voice in it, just replacing it with silent determination. But this wasn't the time to slip into a fake personality. Aizawa was giving me a heads-up of what would happen if I didn't use my full strength in the fights, and although I had my own reservations about my other Quirk, I was willing to at least _try_ to use it from now on.

Even if I didn't know just _why_ I had two Quirks in the first place.

Aizawa nodded, perhaps noticing my seriousness in my voice and face, before suddenly clapping his hands, making some of the students jump.

"Now let's get on with the homeroom notices. I'm sorry to have to spring this on you all, but..."

In unison, the majority of the class -minus the most composed and me, who already knew what was going to happen- tilted forward in their desks, tense and prepared for a mock exam.

"We need to pick a class president."

I sighed, hands covering my ears as absolute _mayhem_ exploded, each of my classmates raising their hands up high and proclaiming they could fill the role rather well. I kept my own hand down, however, because honestly I saw Iida a more-than-fitty student to carry on with this duty.

As said boy demonstrated when he shut the whole class up, gave a small summary of a class president's duty and proposed the matter to be settled with a vote. Aizawa just went on with it and the rest of the class agreed rather quickly to his reasoning, so soon we were all with a piece of paper and a pen to write down the name of our chosen president.

I twirled the pen in between my fingers, pensive. Should I directly vote for Iida and give him at least one vote, or just roll with it and give Midoriya the vote, knowing Iida would become class president either way? Unless something went terribly wrong, my vote shouldn't really influence in the outcome- or so I thought, at least. In the end I mentally shrugged and wrote down Iida's name, going on with what my heart told me was correct.

When the time of the recounting came, the results were as expected...

Or not.

"I GOT THREE VOTES!?" Midoriya shrieked as he gripped his hair between his hands, face pale as he saw the results in the blackboard as if it had sealed his fate.

I was equally stunned when I saw my name having _two_ votes, next to Yaoyorozu who also got two votes herself. The three of us soon stood in front of the class, Midoriya in-between the two of us.

"So then it's president Midoriya and co-vicepresidents Yaoyorozu and Hoseki, huh." Jiro rubbed her chin as she, along with the rest of the class, analyzed us.

"Damn, things are heating up for Midoriya!" Kirishima snickered, ignoring the poor boy trembling in place.

"Yaoyorozu was really cool during the training analysis." Ojiro commented nodding. "And Hoseki's really responsible and calm too."

All in all, with the exception of Bakugo -who vehemently refused to see Midoriya as his superior in any way- there were no complaints about the choices made. This was democracy after all.

Honestly, I hadn't expected to be elected co-vicepresident myself. Not that I particularly minded the responsibility, but my fake kindness was surely what got me in this mess in the first place. For a moment I regretted my fake exterior, but soon thought that this position may prove advantageous if things got hairy. I hadn't as much presence or authority as Midoriya and Iida -eventually- but at least it would bring me some kind of power to make people listen to me and not fall into a frenzied panic.

At lunchtime, Uraraka approached my desk to invite me to eat with her and the rest of her small group-meaning, Midoriya and Iida. I was confused as to why I was being invited into the main gang, but I accepted with a smile.

The enormous mess hall -named Lunch Rush- practically housed all departments of all the three courses, but it still felt crowded with me and my slight claustrophobia closing in. I wasn't really looking forward when the panic ensued with the alert, I grumbled to myself as I pushed my way to the table the three friends were eating at, fighting to keep my food on the tray and plopping down beside Midoriya. For a while all we had was amiable chatter as we consumed our delicious food, me secretly laughing at the panicked expression of the freckled boy sitting at my side.

"I was made class president so suddenly, I'm really not sure if I'm up to the task..." He mumbled almost to himself, bullets of sweat streaming down his face.

"Sure you are!" Uraraka spoke while eating, not lifting her gaze from her bowl of rice.

"I can't see why you're so unsure, Midoriya-san." I smiled gently at him as I picked my simple onigiri and bit down on it. Yum.

"You'll be alright." Iida's voice, while neutral, seemed really convinced. The three of us couldn't help but look at him. "You've got the gts and judgment when it counts, Midoriya. I voted for you because I knew you have it in you to carry us through."

The class president and Uraraka looked in shock at their friend, while I smiled. I knew the girl and the bespectacled boy were the ones that voted up for Midoriya and got him the position. In a way, that settled their friendship and their trust in the normally-unsure boy better than any other, and that made me admire then even more.

I sobered up as Iida told us about his superhero family and his relationship with Ingenium, all the while flailing his arms the way he used to, to emphasize his point. And now I wondered, where did I fit in this group? Why did they want me around, if all I did was to fake to get into their good graces? Would I be able to be called a 'friend' to them, or was it too daring?

"He's a beloved Pro Hero who prizes the rules and guides the people!" I came back to the conversation just as I saw Iida straightening and draw a genuine smile on his face, eyes shining. "And I aspire to be a hero like him one day. As such, I think it might be too soon for me to be in a leadership position. For now, Midoriya is the better man. And his becoming president is the right choice!"

For a moment, silence settled in the small group. Even having known his reasons to become a Pro Hero, it still shook me to the core the passion in which every character in the My Hero Academia anime spoke of their dreams, and the sincere selflessness at his admission of not being fit to become president. In my opinion, it was that selflessness that I admired the most, because I myself was quite the opposite.

I was just keeping myself around people because it was convenient for me. How awful was that?

 _ **!**_

Suddenly sirens blared out, startling the whole room as a mechanic voice called out for a 'Security 3 being breached' and that 'all students should evacuate'.

If what happened at the classroom was chaos, it dwarfed with the explosion that happened at the mess hall once the message kicked in. Students pulling, pushing, shoving, even throwing other people to the floor in their panic and attempt of getting out of danger.

And the _screaming_. Oh God the screaming that hurt the ears more than scratching a blackboard with your nails. I had to keep myself from snapping at the occasional kid that shoved me too harshly -without no effect as I was much heavier than most of them- as I quickly made my way to the massive windows and peeked the situation outside. I didn't attempt to look for the trio of friends, already knowing they'd be safe and that Iida would soon calm down the panicked crowd; right now, I was much more worried about the infiltrating villains disguised themselves as reporters.

Why had I forgotten that little detail!? Even when I just thought about it that same morning, just _why_ did it slip my mind!?

Could I have done something if instead of going with Uraraka and the others I went to search for a teacher and inform them of the danger?

Would things have gone the same way regardless of what I did?

Pressing myself to the glass -partly because of the panicking crowd criushing me against it- I frantically looked outside, bypassing the press swarming the inner patio between the main building and the barrier, my gaze following _beyond_ those...

And locking on the badly ruined back doors, as if something had sliced down one side of it as if it were melted butter.

I paled. This was the confirmation that the villains _did_ get inside with an easiness that insulted U.A's security measures. This would mean in Nezu ordering in a reinforcement of security and a close eye in the students, too blind to actually find out the objective of the infiltrated villains.

And with this, the events at USJ would take place... because of my inaction.

I felt sick to my stomach, but I struggled to keep the bile down.

'It's okay,' I thought to myself, my hands closing into tight fists against the crystal. 'I'm prepared for this. I've been training to keep those dangerous events from happening...'

Aizawa...

Thirteen...

Midoriya...

All Might...

I had to protect them. I couldn't, _didn't_ , lift a finger to change the events previous to USJ, which really sucked.

But at USJ... Things were going to be **different**.

" **EVERYBODY CALM DOWN! IT'S OKAY!** " I finally heard Iida's voice calming the still-panicking crowd. " **IT'S JUST THE PRESS! THERE'S NOTHING TO PANIC ABOUT, IT'S OKAY! YOU'RE AT U.A! LET'S CONDUCT OURSELVES IN THE MANNER OF THOSE ENROLLED AT THE HIGHEST ACADEMIA!** "

* * *

Later, when everything went back to a relatively normal situation and classes resumed, everything went as I expected. The police arrived rather quickly to arrest the rowdy reporters and forced the rest to withdraw from the building, which eased the tensions quite a bit. The students regained their cool after the teachers came back and reassured them everything was okay, but I noticed they were tense and were keeping an eye on whatever suspicious subject that may have surpassed the school grounds.

"All right, President, start us off." Yaoyorozu spoke up from Midoriya's left, while I stood on his right.

Her voice brought me to the present before I dwelt too much in my thoughts thankfully.

"Uh, let us initiate the ceremony for the new class president!" The freckled boy stuttered a bit at the beginning, but soon gained some confidence as he spoke up the next words. "But before that, I need to say something! In the end, I think that Iida would be the better man for the job after all!"

Said boy perked up, his face showing genuine confusion and a pleasant surprise at this turn of events.

"You proved yourself able to unify people so coolly, and it's my judgment that... Iida's becoming class president is the right choice."

The class broke into murmurs, but Kirishima's voice broke through everyone's: "Yeah, he's got a point! Iida made a great showing back there at the lunch room! I wouldn't have minded Midoriya either, of course!"

Kaminari snickered as he turned in his seat to smile at the redhead, nodding as he spoke, "He reminded me of that warning sign you see on emergency exits!"

"Is that alright with you, Aizawa-sensei?" I turned to our teacher as he huddled up in his sleeping bag.

"Whatever, just get on with it already... We're not getting any younger here." He drawled with an apathetic expression.

Of course, Iida accepted the role wholeheartedly... not feeling in the least offended by most of the class giving him the nickname of 'Mr. Emergency Exit'. He did look like one when he tried to stop everyone from panicking after all.

All in all, the day went exactly as it should have been in the manga and the anime, which irked me quite a bit. I still thought maybe I should've done something to change things, but not remembering the exact events occurring during the infiltration stopped me from doing so. Granted the anime didn't show just what the villains did after infiltrating the school, so I wasn't really sure I could've actually done _something_.

'Well, no point in dwelling in the past now...' I thought as classes ended and I was collecting my things, ocassionally waving goodbye at a leaving classmate. 'Next is... USJ. I have to be fully prepared this time, no leaving this half-assed like before.'

"Hoseki-san!"

Midoriya's meek voice called out to me when I was about to trespass the barrier's main doors. I turned in curiosity, just in time to see the freckled boy hunch over and breathe heavily with his hands on his knees. Apparently he'd run up to me to catch me before I left.

"Is there something wrong?" I questioned with a tilt of my head after he regained a bit of breath.

"U-um, I was just curious about something..." For some reason, he oversaw his usual shyness to lock serious eyes with mine. "It's not really any of my business, but I wanted to know... Just why did you choose to become a Pro Hero?"

I felt my eyes widen, caught off-guard by his sudden question. I really didn't expect him to be genuinely interested in my reasons to enter U.A and become a Pro Hero.

'Then again,' I softened my gaze as a smile grazed my lips, 'this is Midoriya Izuku we're talking about. Nosiness _is_ kinda his specialty.'

His curiosity only seemed to increase at my smirk, judging the intense look in his face. I turned my gaze away and up to the orange-ish skies above us.

"Have you ever heard of a Pro Hero named Crimson Crusader?" I asked out of the blue.

"Huh? Uh, yeah, he was one of the best Pro Heroes, some saying he was on par with Endeavor himself!" He nodded rapidly, growing immediately excited. "He got his nickname because of his massive red wings and his undying loyalty to preserve the laws and protect the people, though..." His enthusiasm quickly ebbed away as he continued on, "he died in a villain attack, being ambushed by nasty ones. They say the body couldn't be recovered..."

I smiled ruefully as my gaze shifted from the skies to the ground beneath our feet.

"You know more about him than I do. I'm not really surprised to be honest- you seem to be quite methodical with things that you like." He stuttered something, but I just widened my smile before it turned a bit sad. "His real name, however, I'm sure you don't know."

"His real name?" The freckled boy blinked.

"Yes. His real name was... Hoseki Masaru. He was my father."

Silence, in which the information didn't seem to register him, at first. Then his eyes widened, until at last...

"YOUR FATHER!?"

Even with the serious topic, I couldn't help but chuckle at his surprise. "Well, Pro Heroes _do_ have Hero Names to protect their identities after all."

Midoriya regained his cool after a short while, eyeing me with what seemed comprehension in his dark eyes.

"Then you want to be a Pro Hero to become like your father, then? Just like Iida-san wants to be like his older brother?"

"Oh, not really." I shifted my wings behind my back in a small show of awkwardness. "I never knew my father, so becoming like him is like trying to become a ghost. I don't know anything about his ideals or his motivations, or even if he was a good Pro Hero despite the rumors. So no, it's not because of him."

His brows furrowed, this time in confusion, but he didn't question me out loud, silently letting me collect my thoughts.

"When my father died, my mother became really afraid of villains and a bit... hostile towards Pro Heroes." I explained, a lump tying in my throat as this became more personal. "Over the years she'd grow a bit more tolerant towards the heroes, but still retained that fear of villains that would cause her to always be accompanied by butlers -also acting as bodyguards."

That was the reason why she assigned Kaito and Akira to us, after insisting the elders that she needed the protection. They conceded, if only because they agreed the butlers could protect us from the villains that would be stupid enough to attack a noble family -that was also the reason why I was never attacked too.

I didn't find out any of this until I was fourteen, when I managed to get Akira to answer my questions truthfully.

"When she heard that I wanted to become a Pro Hero, she vehemently disagreed. I had to train directly under a Pro Hero's supervision and get his recommendation to get her to relent, although it didn't stop her from being worried about me." I locked eyes with Midoriya, who was listening with an intense look on his face. "You asked me why I wanted to become a Pro Hero. It's because I want my mother, and everyone I care about, to live in a world where they don't have to be afraid. I want to protect them from the cruelty of the world to the best of my abilities."

' _I want... to protect them from the future that dooms us all._ '

* * *

 **A/N: Okay. So. Here it is, albeit a bit choppy. Better than nothing, right?**

 **To be honest, king gilgamesh's comment about my character being a bit like plastic actually served me to find a way for my OC to grow. It doesn't show quite yet, but Midoriya at least has noticed something's wrong with Enzeru's way of acting at least. So, at least I have to thank them for this... though they're still rude.**

 **-Meiseki Dreams: Thank you so much for your supporting words, they warm my heart so much! I'm glad that despite of my lateness you're so comprehensive about my difficulties in life. Sometimes it's really hard to find people like you. Oh, thank you so much for your offer, I might take you up on that some time! And yes, two heads are better than one indeed hahaha!**

 **-Hitler's Moustache: Sorry for being so snappy in the last comments, but I was actually a bit frustrated because of my lack of vocabulary. It's not your fault, it's mine, as they say. You didn't have to take the brunt of my anger.**

 **-kylC: Thank you for reading and commenting! Here you have it, it's a short corner instead of a full chapter but at least we get to see Midoriya's thoughts on Enzeru! I have to admit, it's been really hard to stay in-character and not risk making Midoriya a bit OOC xD Hope I didn't fall into that mistake!**

 **-SmexyBananas: ... Does that mean you like it? Got worried for a second.**

 **-Celestial stratos: Who knows~? And Midoriya's really analyzing Enzeru. You'll get some of his reasons at the beginning of the chapter.**

 **-antisocialFox: You'll get to see some of Midoriya's thoughts in this chapter, at the beginning. Enemies, huh. In the class, not really; he's acting the way he is because he wants to get in everyone's good side. And no, Shoto's not jealous of him -of the two, the Half-Hot, Half-Cold boy is way stronger, and both of them know that.**

 **-MysteriousGuyWIthAMoustache: It's partially the reason, yes, but not totally it. Well, Enzeru hasn't done anything really to change All Might's decision to give Midoriya One For All, so... Damn those theories of yours about the two Quirks... For the sake of curiosity and the readers, I won't spoil anything, but I admit that your theories are really well-made! Oh, but I'll make a small input in here: the strangers at the beginning and the elders are the same people. Enzeru didn't know what they were called until he was older. And TWO IN THE MORNING!? Man get some sleep!**

 **-Dryptonium: Don't worry, here's the next chapter! Kinda whacky, but at least I managed to get it done. Hope you liked it!**

 **Well, see you guys next chapter!**


	12. Chapter 12

**CHAPTER 12**

 **A/N: Thanks to those who fav/followed my fic, and all anonymous readers!**

 **GUESS WHO'S BACK BITCHES!**

 **Disclaimer: My Hero Academia belongs to the fabulous author Kohei Horikoshi. I only own a couple OCs.**

* * *

The dreaded day had finally come.

I couldn't stop fidgeting in place as I ate my breakfast with Mom, Akira and Kaito. I was convinced Akira could _feel_ my indecision and my terror as clear as day, but didn't comment as he finished making the pancakes; he just kept sending me sporadic glances from the corner of his eye, mouth in a worried frown. Kaito and Mom also spared glances at me, mostly because of all my fidgeting around.

It wasn't until much later that I found their silent behavior suspicious, but for now I was much too worried about what would happen at USJ. To this moment, I couldn't find a way to avoid things from happening.

' _The League of Villains are only interested in destroying the Symbol of Peace._ ' I absentmindedly thought, my fork playing around the bacon. ' _The only reason why Shigaraki began showing interest in Midoriya is because he tried to give an All-Might-worthy punch at Shigaraki to save Asui from being disintegrated into nothingness. Aizawa was a secondary objective in their plans, receiving his injuries only because he was the only one able to stop them... at least temporarily._ '

"En-kun."

' _Okay, first things first. The students were separated by that foggy dude, Kurogiri. If I stopped Bakugo and Kirishima from attacking, would that stop him from dividing us? I doubt it. Plus, the others wouldn't notice his physical body and thus Uraraka wouldn't fling him away to allow Iida to escape. I_ could _fly out of his range and drag some with me, but... Would that be beneficial in the end?_ '

"En-kun?"

' _I guess if I manage to drag_ some _with me, I could fight against some mooks and take some weight off Aizawa's shoulders... But what about Thirteen? He gets seriously injured because of Kurogiri shredding his body... Can I avoid that?_ '

"En-kun!"

"Yes!" I jolted awake from my deep musings, blinking up at my bemused mother.

She breathed deeply, reclining back on her chair, her deep blue eyes not straying from my face. I could see a glint of worry in her pupils as she locked eyes with my grey ones, apparently in search of something.

Her expression ultimately softened, a small teasing smile grazing her lips.

"Are you thinking about a girl?" She rested her chin on her palm, eyes glinting mischievously. "My little boy is enamoured... Ah, the joys of youth..."

I blinked. Once. Twice.

Then, my face flushed in a deep ruby, my cheeks almost aching from the heat.

"W-w-what are you talking about!?" My blush got even worse when I noticed my stammering, my mother giggling in amusement.

"Oh, don't you worry baby, I won't tell a soul about your little secret..." Why did _that_ sound like a bad line from a third-rate porn movie!? "Go on, tell me... Was it one of the lovely ladies that came here the other day?" Don't mix my friends in this!

"I-i-i-it's not what you think!" I protested, even knowing that my blabber wouldn't help in Mom's teasing. "They're just my friends, nothing else!"

"Oooh, so there's more than one~? That won't do, En-kun, you'll break someone's heart if you don't choose one or the other."

"Mom!"

She just chuckled, obviously having fun at my expense.

As terribly embarrasing as that conversation was for me, I later admitted that it served calming my poor nerves, if only for a little while. Once my cheeks stopped turning a red crimson and I was already on my way to U.A, I inwardly thanked Mom for her efforts to cheering me up. It was in moments like this that I felt more like a normal person and not someone in a borrowed body in a universe that by all means _shouldn't exist_.

... Yes, I _still_ had issues with that topic, sue me.

I had the notebook where I wrote everything from the anime in my personal code, leisurely reading it as I walked. Even as I wracked my brains to try and figure out a way to avoid certain things from happening, I just couldn't find a way of doing it without completely and utterly screwing over with the plot... or without me revealing that I had knowledge from the future, as incomplete as it was.

Struck by a sudden thought, I paused in my walking, unfocused eyes fixed in my notebook. What _if_ I revealed to Nezu or anyone smart enough that I knew the future? Because let's face it, I wasn't smart (or at least not Jeremiah Cross-level smart), so I wouldn't be able to foresee what effects would changing this or that scene have. Of course I knew that if I prevented All Might to lose all his powers in his fight with All for One, then he'd have to face him _again_ later on in the story... who knew if it would happen alongside the apparition of the Eight Precepts of Death? _That_ could suck... or actually help out a lot, considering we'd have All Might's power still on our side.

Provided nothing _unexpected_ happened in the way there, of course. Which could _definitely_ suck, I was sure of it.

No. That was risky. If I remembered correctly, there was a traitor among the teachers of U.A. Present Mic revealed their possible existence way early in the first Arc — God I couldn't remember exactly _when_ — but the simple menace of that unknown figure existing and possibly revealing my 'future knowledge' to anyone could end in a disaster.

... Shit. I'd completely forgotten about the potential traitor. Honestly, since it'd been only mentioned once by the mangaka and went by completely, then it didn't really cross my mind until I thought about the possibility of revealing my secrets. Good thing I thought twice about that decision. Though it still didn't give me any solace in my lonely decision of carrying all the information on myself - and the consequences of my actions to act accordingly.

I'd need to keep an eye out to the traitor too. Fuck my life.

I didn't know what to do.

 **—I didn't _know_... And that lack of knowledge would haunt me forever.—**

Unable to focus on the book anymore, I sighed as I closed it and saved it in my bag. Still, my restless mind kept swirling around USJ and the incident with the Villains, still trying to find a leeway in which I could contribute to change things—

—and as I found myself standing before U.A, I still remained with my questions unanswered.

Most of the day came and went like in a daze, as I tried to keep my breakfast down on my stomach for the whole day. I felt like a jerk when I pointedly ignored the concerned looks of my classmates that knew this behavior wasn't at all like me — dismissing it with a smile that felt faker than usual when the few who actually came by and asked to my face. Of course, i knew no one was gullible enough to _actually_ believe my lies, but my main worry was the events of the day, not what my classmates think of my sanity — or lack-there-of.

just as the bell signalling the end of lunchtime rang, Aizawa opened the door, and all of us hurried to sit in silence. He eyed us with his eternal tired expression, then sighed and laid his portfolio on the table.

"For the Foundational Skill of Heroics we'll study today, it was decided you'll be supervised by a three-man team, comprising me, All Might, and someone else." Straight to the point, as always. And my stomach was beginning a revolution against me. _Great_.

' _This is it_.' I breathed deeply with a look of concentration on my face, just as murmurs began spreading like fire.

"Sensei!" Sero raised his hand in the air. "What'll we be doing?"

"Be the hero everyone needs, whether it's a flood or any other disaster..." Aizawa showed us a plaque, it reading 'RESCUE' in bold, capital letters. "It's the 'Trial of Rescue'!"

Of course, a myriad of comments and excited chatter began after that, but I ignored all of that as I tried to control my breathing and my stammering heart, which hurt at each beat. I tried to convince myself that everything would be okay, that the guys would be all alright, that I was there to stop the worse of the USJ Invasion... But to be completely honest, I'd never been an optimist. Even with that mantra in my head, I still felt small shivers of terror at what I'd face.

Because c'mon, Shigaraki Tomura in black-and-white or behind a screen was scary enough, but this time I'd get a first-row view of what his Quirk could do.

... yeah. A _real_ honor alright, and please note the sarcasm.

"—aren't adapted to the task at hand, after all." Aizawa was explaining right then as the boxes containing our hero costumes opened. "The training area is fairly far away, so we'll get there by bus. That's all, go get prepared."

Everyone, including myself, rose from their seats to take their costumes. I assumed I would't need my thermal clothing to be honest, but the small gadgets I hid in the small pockets of my uniform could be useful in a pinch — like the coagulant, the first-aid kits, the small oxygen tanks and the diamond custom daggers. So, I still wore my costume anyways — my PE uniform wouldn't resist even a gust of wind, let alone Nomu's punches if my plans went my way. I reflexively placed my aviator goggles around my head instead of around my neck as I usually donned them, smoothing my white hair back as to avoid it getting on my face.

"Hoseki-san, please come here!" Iida, one of the first in finishing donning his costume, called over to me outside the changing rooms.

Lifting an eyebrow, I shrugged inwardly and came over. Yaoyorozu reached us in our way outside, where the bus that would take us to USJ was waiting. Our mission, according to our class President, was to ensure everyone got on the vehicle in an orderly manner. I debated myself for a long time whether or not to tell him about the possible nature of the bus that would carry us to USJ, but in the end decided otherwise — his reaction was still pretty funny, and I didn't want to miss that.

And as we finally got on the regular bus Aizawa reserved for us, Iida's shell-shocked face told everything that I needed and more.

Worth it.

I felt bad for the guy, though, so in the end we still got the rest of our classmates to get on according to their class number, us three and Aizawa entering last. I had to squeeze my wings against my back all I could and squash the instinctual feeling of claustrophobia I got the moment I stepped inside that giant metal sardine can — also, because of my size, managed to convince the stubborn Class President into letting me stand by the emergency door on the left, in front of Yaoyorozu and Uraraka, and facing the line where Midoriya was seating.

When the bus began moving with an almost imperceptible lurch, I had to hold onto the hangers on the ceiling like a lifeline, my absolute loathing of transportation emerging for the first time since I was reborn into this world. I was the only one standing, obviously, so every sharp turn the driver made, I'd be squishing my wings against the cold door at my back or holding onto the metal bars to avoid faceplanting into the door the opposite way. Eventually, and after only a few minutes, I managed to somehow 'attune' myself to the driver's abrupt driving - much to most of my _dear_ classmates disappointment, of course.

The atmosphere was amiable and chatty, as expected from a group of teenage students going towards what was supposed to be an exciting class. In theory, nothing should go awry.

If only they knew...

* * *

 **TODOROKI POV**

Even as he pretended to be half-asleep on his seat, Todoroki Shoto still took notice on everything happening inside the bus. The training with his father rarely allowed him to relax, his well-honed instincts keeping him half-alert even in light slumber. He prided himself in keeping tabs on whatever happened, due to the others lowering their guard around him as they found him seemingly asleep.

His cousin, Enzeru, already knew of that particular habit — he was, probably, the only one still alert even when Shoto feigned catching a nap. For some reason however, Enzeru always chose to let him "rest" whenever he caught Shoto "asleep". He'd only smile and keep on with whatever he wanted to do — mostly speaking with their friends or reading a book in companionable silence.

This time, though, things were different. Years of growing apart aside, Shoto and Enzeru acknowledged that they'd both changed – Shoto more so than Enzeru. They'd both grown quieter, distant from each other – though still keeping that underlying affection for each other. Even as Shoto grew a bit colder and cynical and Enzeru lost a great part of his goof, they both found silent comfort in each other, as family.

But one thing that the winged boy always managed to retain, even after all those years, was his unwavering calm and confidence. Shoto noticed it as soon as Enzeru and himself reunited in U.A's 1-A Class - that aura of self-confidence still remained, hidden behind that sempiternal half-smile.

 **As if he always knew everything would be okay, no matter what happened.**

Today, however, things felt different. His cousin, standing beside the door with his hand around the post with white-knuckled force, had his brow creased deeply and mouth pulled into a tight-lipped frown. The occasional sharp turns of the bus had him bump against the door every now and then — which would break his concentration for a scarce two seconds before submerging himself in whatever thoughts he plagued his mind with.

It was a puzzling sight, one that Shoto really wasn't used to. Yes, the white-haired boy showed mild worry in certain situations — but he'd never displayed it as openly as it was happening right now, right in front of the whole class. It wasn't that Enzeru wasn't technically _allowed_ to show his feelings — considering he preferred to keep his thoughts to himself however, this turned to be an interesting development from his usual self.

"I usually say what's on my mind..." Suddenly Asui's voice somehow broke trough every other conversation, picking up on Shoto's interest. "Midoriya."

"Oh?!" Midoriya's startled voice made Shoto peer through half-closed eyes. "W-what is it, Asui-san?"

"Please call me Tsuyu-chan. You know, your Quirk resembles All Might's."

The startled splutter that came out of the green-haired kid was funny.

"Wait, hold on, Tsuyu-chan." Kirishima piped up from Asui's other side. "All Might doesn't get hurt at all, though - they're already different in that way. Still, strength-enhancing Quirks are really awesome — you can do a lot of cool stuff with it! Not like my Hardening though..." His arm let out strange creaks as the skin hardened. "I'm good in a fight, but it's real boring."

Apparently relieved that the conversation drifted away from him, Midoriya immediately smiled. "I think that's pretty neat though. Your Quirk's more than enough if you wanna go Pro."

"A Pro~!" Ashido cheered with a great smile on her face. "But don't forget that Heroes also have to worry about popular appeal!"

"My navel laser is both strong and cool. Perfect for a Hero." Aoyama commented, seating in a strangely-stiff position.

"As long as you don't blow up your own stomach!"

He didn't answer, but his unchanging face _somehow_ showed a change without actually being shown on his face.

"You wanna talk strong and cool? That'd be Todoroki, Bakugo and even Hoseki. But Bakugo's so unhinged - he'd never be popular."

"WHAT'D YA SAY, FROG-FACE!?"

Fortunately Shoto had expected an explosive reaction from Bakugo — pun fully intended, so he didn't even open his eyes when he jumped up from the seat in front of him.

"See."

"We've only barely started socializing and already you've made it abundantly clear to us the unpleasantness of your steamed turd of a personality." Kaminari eloquently mocked the enraged explosion-kid without any fear for himself.

"Yeah, okay, Mr. Vocabulary! How about I pound ya!?"

Instead of shushing everyone, that only emboldened the whole bus with laughter as Kirishima added in with a smirk: "I don't think your mouth could _get_ any fouler, Bakugo!"

Scowling a bit at the noise when the laughter redoubled in intensity, Shoto snuggled a bit more into his seat and closed his eyes completely, his curiosity sated for the moment but with new questions about Midoriya flooding in his mind...

' _Still... It's strange that Enzeru didn't say a word at all..._ '

* * *

 **HOSEKI ENZERU POV**

' _I'm_ so _gonna throw up right now._ ' Was all I could think as we all finally arrived at USJ and got off the bus.

Knots twisted my stomach, but not due to excitement. My old streetfighter instincts - from my previous life - practically _screamed_ at me not to come up to so evident a trap unprepared. I didn't join in my classmates' admiration of the interior of the huge establishment as I worried my lower lip, my body tense as a bowstring and rigidly waltzing in behind all my companions. I even missed Thirteen's self-introduction to the class as he (I was assuming it was a 'he', though his spacesuit really made difficult discerning a gender, and his helmet somehow distorted his voice enough) stepped up towards us with Aizawa and that other Pro Hero right th—

Wait, that wasn't correct. Thirteen was supposed to be alone before Aizawa showed up. A second teacher wasn't supposed to be here.

So then, who—?

I froze, my eyes transfixed in that tall, bird-like man who trained me half my life to fight and fly.

"Due to circumstances that are completely _not_ your business..." Aizawa drawled out as he stood to face us, "we'll have another Pro Hero to help us with the Rescue Trial today. Everyone, meet Sky-Soaring Hero: Aquila."

As many broke into cheers at meeting another popular Pro Hero — with Midoriya murmuring incessantly as usual — I tried to remember how to breathe.

' _This... this wasn't supposed to happen!_ He _wasn't supposed to be here of all-fucking-places!_ '

Oh, and remember to reboot my mind.

Aquila's sharp, amber-colored eyes swiped over the students with keen intention, settling a fraction of a second longer on me, before ruffling the feathers of his wings with silent intention. His stern expression didn't really deter those curious enough to drown him in questions though.

"I'm only here to assist with Thirteen and Aizawa during this test." His voice easily broke through said questions. "Unless absolutely necessary, don't pay any attention to me."

... I swear I could _hear_ everyone clamping their mouths shut at his fierce glare.

Satisfied, Aquila gave a sharp nod to both our teachers before backing up. My own face scrunched into a frown — could his presence here change things in our favor? Maybe he could help with Thirteen and save him from that damn Kurogiri using Black Hole against himself — or was I assuming things would remain the same anyways?

' _Argh! This is so stressful! This is why I'm so bad at strategy, Goddamnit!_ '

"If I can regain your attention students!" Thirteen then stepped up again, effectively drawing everyone's attention back to him. "As I'm sure you're all aware, my Quirk is called Black Hole. It can suck and tear apart _anything_."

"And you've used it to save people in all sorts of disasters!" Midoriya immediately piped up, he and most of the students with admiring eyes.

I personally found his Quirk terrifyingly useful. Yes, the potential and variety of uses were enormous, but it could also be disastrous if used the wrong way. I certainly was glad that Thirteen chose to become a Pro Hero instead of a Villain — I shuddered at imagining it, at the havoc he'd create.

"Indeed..." The spacesuit-wearing Pro Hero nodded gravely. "However, my power could easily kill. I've no doubt there are some among you with similar abilities."

' _I wouldn't say some, but_ all _of us. After all, given the right incentive and reason, and the proper training, all of our Quirks can be used to harm others._ '

"In our super-powered society, the use of Quirks is heavily restricted and monitored. It may seem that this system is a stable one, but we must _never_ forget that it only takes one wrong move with an uncontrollable Quirk for people to _die_." He let a few seconds pass as the words sank in everyone's minds, before resuming his lecture with that same grave tone. "During Aizawa-senpai's physical fitness test, you came to learn your own hidden potential. Through All Might's Battle Training, you experienced the danger that your respective Quirks can pose to others."

Almost unnoticed, my nerves slowly calmed down the longer I listened to Thirteen. My jitters didn't exactly go away entirely, it just focused on the impending danger the closer I felt the speech ending.

I couldn't afford myself to freeze when the Villains appeared.

"This class... will show you a new perspective! You will learn how to utilize your Quirks to save lives!" Everyone seemed to perk up at that, eager smiles grazing their faces... while mine and some few more only hardened with determination. "Your powers are not meant to bring harm to others. I hope you leave here today with the understanding that you're meant to _help_ people."

His message delivered, he gave a grandilocuent bow. "That's all! I thank you for listening."

As I expected, Iida broke up in thunderous applause while Uraraka's eyes shone in honest admiration.

The atmosphere felt light enough, if a bit solemn after the speech Thirteen laid out for us. They were all pumped up for the test, eager to demonstrate they were truly Hero-material, to themselves and to their teachers. They entered U.A. to make that come true after all.

As for me...

Well I was pumped up too, but for a different reason. My mind felt sharper, cooler, and with more organized thoughts than before. As I breathed in the strange smell of different microclimates stashed into one place - a mixture of moisture and steam that made me regret taking my uniform with me - I silently reminded myself to thank Thirteen for giving that talk to us. In unforeseen ways, it managed to calm me down enough to keep my wits around me and prepare myself for the upcoming battle.

Aizawa stepped up and opened his mouth to speak.

I lowered my chin in a focused glare, the still-familiar chill of excitement whenever I faced a fight running through my veins, my world becoming incredibly focused and sharp.

Seemingly sensing something strange, my black-haired, lazy teacher turned his head down towards U.S.J. as my classmates chatted among them.

My wings expanded a bit as I opened and closed my hands intermittently.

And then—

"HUDDLE UP AND DON'T MOVE!"

 **— _Our true test began_.**

* * *

 **A/N: So. Yes, that happened. Sorry that it wasn't that long. My small hiatus really did me well, though I still haven't figured out just _how_ I want to play this out. That's why I left it right here. Again, sorry about that *bows deeply***

 **Of course, there _are_ things that will change, but I want to make sure things are not going to bite me in the ass later for changing them. Bear with me people.**

 **Still, I'm surprised for the amount of support this fanfic has! Last I checked, my One Piece fanfic (with 82 chapters long) has as many followers and favorites as this one** **— but Guardian Angel only has 11 chapters in! That's crazy! I think it's the perspective of AU scenes that keep the hopes up, so I'll try not to disappoint anyone.**

 **And the reviews! My God, I think I won't have enough space to answer all of them! Seriously, guys, thank you _so much_ for all that support!**

 **And speaking of the reviews! I think it's high-time I answer them! All of you deserve some answers after all!**

 **-kylC: I'm so glad you liked that small Midoriya POV section! Here is a bit of Shoto's. As you can see, to better differentiate between Enzeru's and other people's POV, theirs are gonna be in third person while our protagonist's will remain in first person. I already swapped it up in previous chapters** **— unless I missed any, in which case I'll change it ASAP. As always, thank you so much for all your support, I really appreciate it!**

 **-That Random User: Heheh, sorry, I'll keep on with the suspense just for a little while longer!**

 **-erickadeodato6: Glad you liked it! Honestly I'm quite proud at this job, though I still have some issues about some things here and there. Nothing major, but still annoying to me as a writer.**

 **-Betoran: Thank you so much! Naw, don't worry about it, I realize my Author notes are really large. It's cool! To answer your question, his knowledge only goes as far as the middle of the Internship Arc. I'd love to make Enzeru/Peter know more, but somehow it didn't seat well to me that he knew more things out of thin air. This fic was written on October 18th, and the last chapter Horikoshi-san wrote was chapter 156 of the manga. So... Yeah. Enzeru/Peter has _all_ that knowledge to worry about. And that if he doesnt't end up flipping the script so much it becomes obsolete...**

 **-Ciel Blaze: Thank you so much! Here's the continuation. It's only a bridge between what happened and what I have in store for our students though...**

 **-Shinome Akira: Thank you so much! Oh, it's just a couple times. I changed the POV of the characters (I already explained it to kylC above if you want) but I'll try to keep them short from now on.**

 **-StrifeStelar Mizo: Already answered via PM!**

 **-Besuto Jeanisto: Love your nick! Don't you worry, here's the next chapter! And about him opening up... Oh he'll get there... eventually. And yes he does! Things haven't really drastically changed for him, so obviously he's still feeling as if dettached from this new reality he's living in. That's why I'm bringing these chapters really slow — I don't want to screw it up in the pinnacle of the changes for class 1-A. I'm glad you liked it! Every other OC in other fics had conversations with Yagi one way or another and — following with the cliche, my OC couldn't be less!**

 **-LordAzrael1: I'm glad you liked it! Here's the continuation, and sorry for the wait!**

 **-Guest: Well I personally highly dislike know-it-all OC's that manage to change scenes just by thinking it through. As he said, Enzeru is NOT a strategist** — **however, since he is a lucky bastard, he'll get some things his way... and some not. Maybe he'll grow up to be a strategist though — I'm keeping an open mind about it! Of course the class will be in awe of him however! He is kinda the sort of guy to say exactly what needs to be said — mostly because he knows exactly how others will react to what he says.**

 **-Griffin fath: Don't worry, here's the next chapter! I'm sorry for the wait, I promise I won't delay much longer with the next chapter!**

 **-EmoLord: Sorry for the wait Emo! I'm so glad you like it though!**

 **-de junco: Oh wow, that is a LONG review! Yes, honestly that's the way I'd personally react if I'd be in a fictional universe — at first I'd be completely shocked, and it'd take something really drastic for me to finally convince myself that it's actually real, that it's not a videogame or an anime. And even then, maybe I wouldn't be completely myself. Oh man that was embarrassing — in Spanish 'molesting' is actually bothering someone but not in a sexual way, so that's my bad. I'll have it changed ASAP. And I'm glad you understand my decision of not having romance showing in my fic. Oh, and the thing about Yuki and Koe having the same eye-color? My bad too, I'll change it so Shoto's mother has grey eyes and Enzeru's has blue eyes.**

 **-otaku1325: Thank you so much! Here's the following chapter, and sorry for the long wait!**

 **-PervyPanda: There'll be some more POV's don't worry! This one's very short, but I'll make them longer as the fic continues!**

 **-Guest (2): Thanks for the input! Honestly my mind is a bit rushed up and that unfortunately shows in my writing style. Right now Enzeru's a bit preoccupied with what's happening with the future and is paying little-to-no attention to what's happening around him — actually he never got a really good view at USJ for example. Let's see if that doesn't bite him in the ass later. Oh, you mean Aquila? I think you read my mind LOL.**

 **-** **Well, see you guys next chapter!**


	13. Chapter 13

**CHAPTER 13**

 **A/N: Thanks to those who fav/followed my fic, and all anonymous readers!**

 **So, another short chapter. I'm giving you the best part of the first arc practically in morsels. But I'm enjoying this too much. So, sorry-not-sorry?**

 **Disclaimer: My Hero Academia belongs to the fabulous author Kohei Horikoshi. I only own a couple OCs.**

* * *

Ice ran cold through my veins, though my mind remained unsettlingly clear in the chaotic roar of the emerging Villains.

My logic mind, the one that remained before my reincarnation, struggled to understand the impossible image of people emerging from what appeared to be a black hole suspended in mid-air right in the middle of the training grounds. Despite my 15-year-old experience in impossible wonders, I _still_ had to struggle to accept them as possible — not that it was that difficult to do so anyways, magic being wondrously refreshing in boring everyday life.

And I'm getting sidetracked.

As my fellow classmates curiously peeked around Aizawa to see what the commotion was about, I tried to keep myself in the center of the group, breathing deeply to remain calm and collected to act faster than the Villains. My hands, with small tremors running through them, each gripped a conceiled diamond dagger, ready to let loose - though that wasn't the smartest idea with Kurogiri.

' _Close-range weapons it is, then._ ' Which translated into old-trusted punches, my favorite.

From my vantage point in the middle of the group, I could barely discern the Villain Alliance down the staircase spreading out, but I could certainly _hear_ them roaring with barely-contained bloodlust and hatred — a familiar melody to my old soul, forged in countless street fights that I mostly emerged victorious from. It sang in harmony with them, an ancient battle-song that thrummed deep within my veins, excitement briefly boiling my blood before settling down into the familiar coldness.

' _It's been too long since I genuinely fought for my life._ '

I wouldn't kid myself however — this fight, the one with bona-fide Villains with impossible superpowers, had nothing to do with my old streetfights, where all you could really count on is in your training and the strength of your fists and legs. This time, unnatural superpowers would tilt the fight in favor of one or the other side.

They had the advantage in being already veterans to fights with their respective Quirks, having used them to commit crimes and fight off Pro Heroes almost all their lives.

 _Our_ advantage, however, was that we were All Might's students, of the prestigious 1-A Class of U.A.

As Shigaraki Tomura proclaimed, we were _really_ the golden eggs of U.A.

Thirteen stepped up in front of our group, poised for battle, while Eraserhead and Aquila both stood side-by-side. The three of them looked grim enough to convince the rest of my classmates that this wasn't a drill or a joke — we were really being attacked by genuine Villains.

Fortunately, that didn't set them up in a panicked frenzy, though it _did_ make them freeze up in terror for a few seconds. A crucial mistake if they were mid-battle, but standing in the side-lines as we were, that didn't have any regretful consequences.

' _Yet._ ' Thought the cynical side of me.

I let out a quiet exhale. ' _The dice has been rolled._ '

"Villains?!" Someone called out incredulously — I think it was Sero. "What Villains'd be dumb enough to sneak into a school of heroes?"

"Dumb?" I spoke with a very serious voice, graver than anyone had ever heard me use — it didn't escape to me how some whirled around to look at me in both wonder, confusion, and a little bit of fear. "No intruders sensors triggered when they infiltrated USJ, so obviously there is someone tampering them with their Quirk, hidden away from our sights as to not be easily targetable. There are roughly a bit less than a hundred or so Villains, not powerful or smart enough to pose a problem on their own but numerous enough to be a bit of a hassle for Eraserhead to take out on his own. And the fact that they attacked a building far away from the main campus while making sure that there are people in it also makes me think that their attack was premeditative, not born from the spur of a heated moment. I think there are rather well-prepared to be dumb Villains."

A couple long seconds passed, while now most of the students glared at me wide-eyed at that long speech I just gave. Yaoyorozu and Shoto, as I expected, didn't seem that surprised — I just butchered in that speech all that they were going to say after all.

"Thirteen, begin the evacuation." Eraserhead then ordered, as if I hadn't said a word — not that it really bothered me, since he was much more preocuppied with the Villains fanning out all over USJ than in a speech one of his students gave. "As Hoseki said, one of the Villains must be jamming with the sensors — there's a good chance one of the electric-types is causing the interference. Kaminari," said boy turned to him with a small yelp, "try using your Quirk to signal for help."

I pressed my lips in a thin line.

"But Sensei, you can't just fight them all alone!" Midoriya tried to stop our teacher from jumping right into the fray, worry laced in his voice and face. "Against that many, even you can't nullify all their Quirks! As Eraserhead, your fighting style involves erasure and quick binding capture. Head-on battle isn't-"

But Eraserhead turned his head and cut Midoriya off. "No good Pro Hero is a one-trick pony. Aquila, please stay here and help Thirteen evacuate the students." He softly ordered — not our teacher, but the Pro Hero behind the mask. "These are mostly mooks and small fry, I can take care of them."

Despite his dislikeness at being ordered around, Aquila just grunted and shifted his wings a little, no longer ready to take-off to the air. Eraserhead was right - not counting their number, about a hundred or so, their power barely reached that of a true Pro Hero. If nothing went wrong, Eraserhead was more than enough to take care of them.

I knew better though.

"Steer clear from that man covered with hands." My old flight sensei recommended my actual sensei, apparently struggling to keep himself away from the fight. "I get the feeling he's far more dangerous than he seems."

I blinked in surprise. Was Shigaraki's potential danger that evident? I obviously knew it thanks to the manga and anime (and the fact that Horikoshi more than foreshadowed his frightening power), but Aquila didn't have way of knowing that — unless he possessed some sort of Quirk-assessment Quirk on his own.

Huh. Anything could be possible, really. I possessed two Quirks after all.

Eraserhead just gave a curt nod and took a huge leap in the middle of the mooks, his hair and long scarf floating from his power — though I still didn't get how that worked. Said grunts only had half-a-second to realize he just landed on their midst before they began being pummeled by one of the most powerful Pro Heroes there existed — in my most humble opinion of course.

I stole a sideways glance to Kaminari, whose face was scrunched up in concentration as he tried to break the signal jam, but I already knew that it was highly unlikely that he'd be able to break free.

As I also knew that it was highly unlikely that Kurogiri would let us go that easily.

And lo and behold, as soon as that thought crossed my mind, a black swirly mass, not entirely human but with enough resemblance of one, suddenly appeared before our group could pass through the heavy metal doors leading to freedom. Since I was tall enough to look over most of my fellow classmates' heads, I could easily discern his strange appearance, only human-like in the way he condensed the smoke around him. The strange collar around his neck was the only thing slightly off-putting around him that wasn't exactly part of his smoke appearance, along with the two thin, yellow lines where his eyes should be.

My breath caught in my throat as it closed up when my eyes locked with his. The pure evilness they exuded, so crude and raw, combined with the more than obvious loyalty he held towards Shigaraki and All For One and also the sharp coldness towards human life in general... The product of those emotions held in his eyes was unlike anything else I'd ever seen in both my lifes. For a terrifying moment, I felt like a fly caught in a smokey web, a tarantula ready to pounce on me the closer I got to it.

For a split moment, I felt trapped, under Kurogiri's control. All my streetfighter instincts, rusty or not, suddenly flew out of the window, leaving me quivering before a heady maliciousness, a trembling leaf at the wind's mercy. I was powerless, defenseless, all my knowledge useless before what I thought was inevitability made flesh before my eyes.

 **I hated that.**

Just like that, the familiar excitement and anticipation returned once more. I bit my lower lip until a drop of blood came out, the stinging pain grounding me more than ever, the small dregs of fear fading like smoke in the wind.

" _ **I won't allow you to escape.**_ " His voice was darker than a moon-less night, so in-tune with his Quirk it reflected in his voice too. Like a flash, both Thirteen and Aquila stepped between Kurogiri and us, ready for battle with tense postures. " _ **Greetings. We are the League of Villains. Forgive our audacity, but... Today, we've come here to U.A Highschool, this bastion of heroism...**_ "

His mist-like shape seemed to expand.

" ** _To end the life of All Might, the Symbol of Peace._** "

There was a shocked silence at that, but I was no longer affected by that monster's enigmatic aura. Mouth pressed into a hard line, I surreptitiously glanced around until I found the one I was looking for, terrified and muted, just at my right. As subtle as I could, I gave him a nudge with my elbow (which served to take him out of his terrified reverie) and I passed him a note — written hastily before I came to U.A, but no one needed to know that. I did the same with the other crucial element of my plan — though she was slightly behind me, and I had to wait several tense seconds before the note I put behind my back disappeared.

Meanwhile, Kurogiri's monologue continued.

" _ **We were under the impression that All Might would be here today, but...**_ " A falsely-disappointed sigh left him as he mimed the actions of a human shaking his head. " _ **It seems his schedule was revised? Well, no matter.**_ "

My companion in my plan turned terrified eyes to me after reading the note and nodded once, determination struggling to show in his face behind his dark mask. A tap on my shoulder confirmed my other companion also got my orders. I nodded in return, tensing when I saw from the corner of my eye Kurogiri extending his mist around all our group, getting ready to carry out his orders. Thirteen's right index finger's cap came off with a soft 'flick' while Aquila scratched the ground beneath his claws, ready to take off.

" _ **My role remains unchanged.**_ "

It took all my willpower to _not_ dash forward and barrel through my classmates when suddenly Kirishima and Bakugo dashed forwards at impossible speed, their own Quirks activated to blast the Villain to oblivion.

 _ **SKLIT BOOOOM!**_

The smoke from Bakugo's explosions mingled with Kurogiri's natural one, the mixture turning strangely grey-ish and hiding his amorphous figure from view for a brief moment.

"Not if we end you first!" Kirishima proclaimed, both his arms hardened and held aloft in front of his torso. "Bet'cha didn't see _that_ comin'!"

For a moment all the students looked on in excitement, anticipated grins already forming in their faces—

" ** _That_ was _close..._** "

—until that excitement burned into a crisp at the smug, if somewhat surprised voice that rumbled from beneath the smoke... now evidently belonging solely to Kurogiri. As expected he'd been completely unharmed from the explosions and the slashes. I tensed in preparation.

" _ **Yes... Students though you may be, you are the best of the best.**_ "

"Shit!"

In a blinding blur, Aquila dashed forward, aided by his massive wings, and snatched up Bakugo and Kirishima by the back of their Hero costumes. By the time he did that and took off to the skies, it took all but two seconds in total.

While unexpected, I certainly welcomed the help, glad that I didn't have to worry about those two anymore. I knew that they'd be safe if they were separated though, so them getting teleported away or not wasn't really a concern.

Kurogiri only followed their trajectory with his strange gaze, uninterested in the trio for the moment—

—before he snapped it down on us, pining us with its glaciness.

" _ **BEGONE.**_ "

I was prepared, however, when the first tendrils of his mist darted out both sides of our group.

"NOW!"

In the span it took for the mist to come crashing down on us like a massive dark wave, I'd already set my plan in motion, which consisted in three simple steps that took time almost simultaneously.

One: Sero's tape served me to surround most of our group's waists to keep them close to me in a bundle, with the other end of it tightly wrapped around my own waist. I trusted in its sturdiness enough that it didn't matter how much weight it had to endure it wouldn't snap in two at the worse of moments.

Two: As I couldn't heavy-lift _all_ of my friends on my own —even with all my strength, that only served if I activated my Diamond Quirk, and I wanted to fly up as quickly as possible, totally unburdened— I had Uraraka use her zero gravity Quirk in a couple of them, mostly the heavier ones like Koji. I already counted in them _not_ being sucked up into the portal, but hey, better safe than sorry.

And three: as soon as steps one and two were complete, I launched myself up into the skies as quick and as hard as I could, nearly tearing off my wing and back muscles for that little stunt I made.

And now up we were, a bunch of teenagers hanging onto a thread while the top-end of it struggled to keep them afloat with all the strength he got... and inwardly thanking all that harsh training he had to endure. The only ones that remained on the floor were Thirteen, a slowly-reforming Kurogiri and a couple students Sero's tape couldn't reach in time before the Villain attacked. I managed to discern Iida, Mezo and Ashido as the mist dispersed into Kurogiri's form once more.

" _ **What?**_ "

The bad thing of amorphous, dark mist creatures? They didn't have a _face_ to begin with, so divinating their expressions turned out to be a pain-in-the-ass. I liked to think that I managed to surprise the smug son-of-a-bitch enough to make him wary of me.

... Maybe not a good idea, seen in restrospective, but at least my friends were safe one way or another.

"Hoseki-san, what—?" Midoriya glanced up at me, still dazed. Most of my classmates that were hanging on did the same.

"Wow, that was amazingly manly, Hoseki!" Kirishima cheered me on, still under Aquila's claw. Literally.

"You saved our asses down there..." Kaminari let out a sigh as he gripped onto the tape as tight as he could, glancing down warily at the floor beneath our feet.

Which was way, _way down._

"Please guys, someone down there has to lose some weight." I groaned as I kept flapping my wings as hard as I can to keep us afloat. Uraraka then finished with the use of her Quirk with a gulp, which made me stutter mid-air before catching myself.

" ** _I see_**."

I tensed, while everyone down hanging by the tape shut up fast.

" _ **An astounding strategy that you formulated in the spur of the moment, with only a few moments of assessing my intentions. That, if we take into account that apparently you also analyzed my Quirk.**_ " Even as he complimented my quick-thinking, his mist swirled rapidly as in agitation or irritation. It surprised me — from what I knew of Kurogiri, he was a calm individual, able to keep with Shigaraki's childishness rather well. " _ **You managed to use your allies' Quirks to your benefit in order to safe those closest to my mist. You had to make a split decision on who to save and who to leave down.**_ "

My lips pressed into a thin line, my hands gripping the tape tighter still, it digging in my palms.

" _ **Tell me boy...**_ " The swirls expanded and then retracted again, as if trying to keep his calm, " _ **how did you figure out how to counteract my plan?**_ "

A shiver crossed down my spine, one that mixed adrenaline and terror in equal measures. The glare Kurogiri threw at me had that kind of effect of me — unfortunately for him, it didn't really affect me the way he expected it to. My gaze hardened down at him, my hands practically strangling the tape as I struggled to come up with a convincing answer without tipping him or the others that I had future knowledge.

And I still had to set in motion the other part of my plan to take out Kurogiri for good — at least before Shigaraki and Nomu took their hit on Eraserhead.

Movement called my attention briefly to Aquila — who somehow managed to fly far closer to Kurogiri without him noticing — and mouthed me something:

" _Drop. Grav._ "

At first I didn't get just what he meant. That seemed to reflect on my eyes, because he flickered his eyes down to Kurogiri, then to Kirishima and Bakugo, and then to my group of students. He repeated the motion twice more before I finally got it — as surreptitiously as I could, I directed a nod at him.

Just like that, another plan was formed. I'd already planned on half of it, so that was okay.

" _ **Well, boy?**_ "

But first, I had to distract Kurogiri. I was sure that he'd noticed we were planning something, considering he'd been watching me with the attention of a hawk.

With the professionalism of fifteen years, my fake polite mask slipped on my face with ease, my lips quirking up in a polite smile that rivalled with Kurogiri's manners.

"Oh, it was simple. _Divide et impera._ " He let out a hum of curiosity. "One of the oldest tricks in the book, divide and conquer. Considering we were all huddled up in one space and only you were the one sent here, I assumed you were sent not to kill us directly, but to divide us all with your Quirk. Where exactly, I don't know, but I'm sure there'd have been more Villains to finish us off. After all..." My smile turned a bit cheesy and smug, "what can a bunch of snotty students, confused and preoccupied, do against a well-organized association of Villains?"

"Hey, who're you calling snotty?!" Someone shouted from below me, making me roll my eyes inwardly as a ruckus began. Fortunately I managed to reinforce my covered arms with diamond as to not suddenly drop them — though they were starting to hurt from the exertion.

"USJ is currently divided into seven main areas. The entrance, where we're standing right now — sort of, anyway. The central plaza, where Aizawa-sensei and the main bulk of all those Villains are currently fighting." As I mentioned the latter, I glanced over there — and gave a small sigh of relief when I saw Eraserhead still fighting against the Villains, no sign of Nomu yet. "And the five different disaster zones: the ruins, the landslide, the conflagration, the mountain, the downpour and the flood zones. From up here, I can see Villains dispersed through some of the zones."

... That was actually bullshit, but Kurogiri didn't know how good my eyesight was, so...

"You were planning on disperse us all to the different zones and have us killed to potentially attract All Might-san once word got through, right?" My fake smile slipped away, being replaced by a frown. "You said it after all — your main plan is really decimating All Might-san."

Kurogiri's own yellow slits narrowed even further.

"Your Quirk is Warp, that much is evident. Your mist allows you to warp people — and maybe even Quirks — from one place to another. And while I don't know the range of your warpings, I'd assume the more people you teleport away, the shorter the distance they can travel. From where we are —and not taking into account the outside of USJ— the closest zones you could possibly send us are thus: the main plaza, the downpour zone, the landslide zone, the conflagration zone, and the flood zone. Given that you're standing in our way to the entrance door, you don't want us to get out and get help — and from the way the signals are jammed, we can't contact them via Quirk."

Now the swirls of mist seemed more agitated than before, but I struggled to keep my gaze onto Kurogiri's slits not for the first time wishing I could see his expression.

"Now I don't know how many portals you can open at once, and I'll try to not assume things here — it's your Quirk after all. And I'm also going to refrain from trying to figure out just _how_ you plan on killing All Might-san if there is no way to—"

" _ **Enough**_ ** _._** "

For the first time since I was reborn, the chilliness of a voice managed to make me freeze in place. It'd been a really long time since I'd been intimidated into shutting up, and the sensation was as unwelcome as ever.

" _ **Interesting analysis. Oddly... accurate, to say the least. You are correct, boy, in what our plans were, and I applaud you for figuring out so quickly. You have a really good strategist mind, quick and alert. There are few right now with such qualities.**_ "

I barely held back a sneer. I didn't want or need his compliments.

" _ **However...**_ "

I could almost _see_ the smile in his non-existent face when he dragged on with that word, instantly putting me on high alert—

" _ **Knowing too much is dangerous.**_ "

Aaaaaand that was Aquila's cue to act, considering _all_ of Kurogiri's attention was focused solely on me. As I tensed in preparation of what could come after me, he managed to sneak in behind and above Kurogiri and drop both Kirishima and Bakugo to blast him for the second time. They both roared as they fell, gravity aiding them in building momentum for their strike—

— but the Villain seamlessly dodged _both_ of them, this time the explosions and the hardened arm not landing in the mist. Immediately my classmates jumped back and apart from each other, letting Aquila swoop down and get _really_ close to Kurogiri. The eagle-man then inhaled deeply—

 ** _SCREEEEEEEEEEEEEE_** ** _—!_**

— and blasted a bomb of pure noise right on his face, at point-blank range. Thirteen, Mezo, Iida and Ashido all covered their ears in protest — well, Thirteen didn't interestingly enough. The ones up above with me tried to imitate them while keeping their grips on the tape — though the volume of the blast wasn't all that unbearable, thankfully.

The effects on Kurogiri, however...

"YEEEEEEARGH!"

— Huh?

That... wasn't Kurogiri.

A brown feather fell.

My eyes followed its trajectory as if entranced.

' _It's... not yet time for molting feathers... That feather still looks healthy too..._ '

My eyes widened as more feathers joined the first, too much to count. Slowly, my heartbeat drumming in my ears, I raised my gaze up to my flight teacher — to find him on his knees, howling his heart out in agony and fear, completely ignoring Kurogiri poised up intact in front of him, looking down at him. I noticed a hand emerging from the front of his mist body, all five fingertips tightly grabbing the wing.

Which was crumbling, as if **decayed**.

My heart stopped beating as I fully registered what I was seeing.

" _ **Ah, Shigaraki Tomura... I thank you for assisting me.**_ "

In painfully-slow motion, I watched as Aquila's left wing was being disintegrated before my very eyes.

"I came only because you were taking so long in dispersing the brats." Shigaraki childishly protested as he emerged fully from the portal in all his creepy glory.

 _Shigaraki's hand was touching Aquila's left wing._

" ** _My apologies, I was... delayed._** "

 **Aquila was going to disappear.**

"So I have to step up to eliminate the mooks before facing the Big Boss, huh."

Blood boiled in my veins, a hand gripping a diamond dagger I didn't even notice I just got out of its side pouch. Honestly, I didn't bother to smooth my rage, as the **monster** I knew as Shigaraki Tomura _was turning my teacher to dust before my eyes._

 ** _I'm going TO KILL HIM!_**

* * *

 **A/N: ...**

 **So. That happened. Things _can_ go wrong when you change things. Or at least wrong- _er_ than you expected. This time it's happening to a character that's not canon, but next time it _could_ happen to anyone.**

 **Because let's be honest everyone. Things _will_ happen. And they can go very, _very_ wrong, no matter how prepared you feel about it.**

 **-Tejerina: I'm glad you liked it! Welcome to the show. I assure you you're in for a hell of a ride.**

 **-justrose: Aw, thanks! I hope I live up to your expectations!**

 **-pizzasdf: Thank you so much! Unfortunately here is another short chapter, basically because the cliffhanger was just too good to pass up, sorry. (not really lol).**

 **-kylC: Heheh, read my chapters! Ditch school Lol. (JK go to school/uni, it's good!). I'm glad you liked it! I feel much more comfortable like this, though now I have to remember to speak in first person for Enzeru and the others in third person lol. And here's the continuation! Hopefully next chapter will be even more shocking than this one.**

 **Well, see you guys next chapter!**

 **P.S: Should I change one of the genres to angst/drama? Because there will be from now on...**


	14. Chapter 14

**CHAPTER 14**

 **A/N: Thanks to those who fav/followed my fic, and all anonymous readers!**

 **500 followers already, in a story that barely reaches 14 chapters in. And not precisely the best-written ones.**

 **Still, I am _damn_ proud of what I managed to accomplish here.**

 **Thank you all so much for your encouragement! It is way more than I deserve.**

 **Disclaimer: My Hero Academia belongs to the fabulous author Kohei Horikoshi. I only own a couple OCs.**

* * *

 _ **BONK!**_

 _ **"OW! The fuck was that for motherfucker!?"**_

 _ **BO-BONK!**_

 _ **"YEOWCH!"**_

 _ **"First of all,**_ **language** _ **. You may think you can say anything in the spur of the moment, but no trainee of mine will have a foul mouth in my presence."**_

 _ **"Lay off my back geezer, you're not my old man..."**_

 _ **"... Want another?"**_

 _ **"..."**_

 _ **"Thought so."**_

 _ ***grumble grumble grumble***_

 _ **"You better pray I don't hear any cussing in that mumbo jumbo."**_

 _ ***grumble grumble grumble***_

 ** _"And second of all_** — **_Stop losing focus. I know you have... anger issues to say the least, but I didn't take you in so that you could throw all your training out the window like that. If you don't keep your head cool, next time you'll_ die _."_**

 ** _"Pbeh, as if you actually care 'bout me dyin'."_**

 ** _"True, I really don't. But your brother surely does."_**

 ** _"..."_**

 ** _"After all, you're doing all of..._ this _... for him. Am I correct?"_**

 ** _"... You..."_**

 ** _"It's your_ duty _, as his older brother, to take care of him in every way you can. Here, you can gain lots of money at a rather quick pace... Provided, of course, that you don't get caught in the process or afterwards."_**

 ** _"Ggh..."_**

 ** _"Of course the fruits of your work will pay off in the moment you get into the job. As you surely understand, I can't risk my organization's downfall because of some rookie's mistakes because he just. Couldn't._ Focus. _Under my training, you'll be as cool as an iceberg, and as unshakeable as a mountain. You'll be our weapon, our tool, without feelings, so that no more mistakes are made. Do I make myself clear?"_**

 ** _"... You motherf_** — ** _"_**

 ** _"I said do I make. Myself._ Clear _?"_**

 ** _"... Yes._ Sir _."_**

 ** _"Wonderful. Now, let's begin with the most basic of basics. One: assess your enemies."_**

* * *

I couldn't move from my petrified state. My muscles didn't even twitch when I tried to blink, to relieve my eyes of the horrific scene happening below me.

The ringing in my ears increased in volume the longer I stared, time crawling by as slow as a snail. Everything happened in slow-motion, like a bad-rating movie in one of those moments where tension was about to snap.

Well _I_ was about to snap anytime soon.

I didn't even register the moment where my diamond dagger flew through the air in search of Shigaraki's body. It flew wide of course, my aim unfortunately crap still despite the time I spent practising — not even Kurogiri saw necessary intervening with his annoying mist. Now I was down one of my daggers, nine others remaining in my utility belt and the rest I could create from my own wings.

Me failing worsened my already crappy mood, a slow 'tch' escaping my snarling lips as I scowled down at the Villains. Nothing else existed to me, not the students dangling below me, not Thirteen and the couple other classmates around him — not even Eraserhead mattered at that moment.

 _All I wanted was my enemies' **blood**_.

Aquila moved at that moment too. With a barely-audible grunt, he threw himself backwards bringing Shigaraki closer to him in a single move and brought one of his clawed feet to his chest, pushing with all his might and the momentum of the impromptu fall. Shigaraki apparently couldn't react in time, as the hand grasping the Hero's wing slackened and lost its grip with the hefty push — he didn't fall due to Kurogiri standing right behind him though.

My eyes immediately zoomed in to his wing almost instantaneously. I noticed with a terrified gulp the graying patch of dead skin and feathers had grown too large for comfort, covering the entirety of the alula and some of the median secondary coverts — what would be considered the 'elbow joint' with a bit of his 'forearm'. I didn't know enough about Shigaraki's Quirk to know if that part of his wing would be permanently disabled considering its delicate bones, but at least he didn't lose the entirety of his wing.

I minutely relaxed, the hazy red fog in my eyes diminishing enough to notice more details. Thirteen had his finger pointed straight at the Villains, but some hushed conversation between him and Aquila stopped him from sucking them to oblivion.

However, a hand grasping at the scratches Aquila left on his chest, Shigaraki's attention was elsewhere.

On us.

 _On me._

"Kurogiri." His breezy voice somehow travelled without issue towards us, and I couldn't help a shiver running down my spine as I struggled to keep flapping my wings to stay afloat — it seemed as if his glare could pierce right through me, locking my muscles in place. "Get rid of these pests here."

He crouched, arms dangling in front of him in a crude mockery of a monkey. I tensed, eyes widening in alarm.

" _I'm gonna take down a birdie._ "

' _SHIT!_ '

"Hoseki-kun! _FLY!_ " Aquila immediately roared, whirling around to face us.

Oh he didn't have to tell me twice — especially considering the evil motherfucker had just managed to _cross the whole distance between us in a single jump HOLY FUCK!_

My friends yelled when I suddenly swerved out of Shigaraki's grasping hand's way and fled from the scene, ignoring the way my wing muscles protested at my sudden actions. I had to get away, I had to get my friends to safety—

"Stop squirming."

A strangled yelp of terror resounded, as yet _another hand appeared from fucking thin air inches from my unprotected face!_ Beyond it, Shigaraki's crazed red eyes shone with an almost otherworldly malevolence, wide and fixed on my petrified expression.

"Worms aren't supposed to squirm under its master's fingertips."

The pad of his middle finger brushed my forehead.

Instincts kicked in.

Wings snapped shut, gravity immediately taking a hold of my body and my friends', narrowly avoiding having my face turned to dust. Shigaraki only hummed in what seemed confusion and interest at the same time as we plummeted down, struggling to keep Shigaraki away from us, from _me_ —

I wanted to smack myself over the head as an idea suddenly popped in my mind:

"JIRO-SAN, YOUR QUIRK!" I screamed, my voice barely reaching over my friends with the howling of the wind. "USE IT, QUICKLY!"

Her answer went unheeded, as I barely caught a glimpse of Shigaraki also fall down towards us, much closer to my friends than myself. Grunting in silent stubbornness, I yanked my wings back open and made an aerial hoop move in place, seamlessly letting the villain sweep by our side as he continued falling without us—but quickly disappearing as a dark hole swallowed him.

' _So that's how he moves so quickly._ '

I didn't lose any more time as I continued flying away, eyes peeled for a hiding place or somewhere we could get our bearings and strategize—

"GAH!"

—but proved quite difficult with a persistent Shigaraki on our Goddamn _heels_! Somehow a new rift had appeared just behind me instead of above me as I expected. I noticed that he'd forgone myself as his objective and chose to go after my friends, and that sent me in a bit of a panic.

Thankfully, this time Jiro didn't need any prompting from me, as suddenly a blast of pure _noise_ all but blasted Shigaraki away from us, the heavy-but-quick **ba-dumb** of heartbeats keeping him away in a staccato rhythm. It spoke clearly of Jiro's currently panicked state, but at least it served to put enough distance between us so that we could get away at break-neck speed, forcing my wings to its max velocity.

I didn't stop flying until I managed to find some place to hide in the mountain area — kudos to the architects and technical team for making the scenery so realistic, it even had freaking _caves_ of all things.

All my body had begun trembling in exhaustion and adrenaline when I flopped my friends on the ledge of a cave, me falling to my hands and knees with a grunt, breathing harshly and my heartbeat drumming wild. It took a good minute to regain enough control over my body as to retract my shivering wings to my back and stop the remaining tremors, shifting so that I remained kneeling. I breathed in deeply, somehow the air conditioning of the mountain area making an almost uncanny resemblance of the crisp air of a normal mountain with high altitude.

Almost without noticing, I'd dragged my friends all the way across the USJ and to the northest location of the compound, just opposite to the entrance. For a moment I cursed and kicked myself for running _away_ from the danger instead of helping dispelling it, but the most rational part of my mind argued that, had I remained there, then my friends would've been in serious trouble.

Ignoring my classmates as they managed to get out of Sero's surprisingly sturdy tape, I stood up and drifted over to the border of the ledge we were situated upon, my eyes taking in the scene as best I could. We were pretty far-in the mountain zone, just managing to distinguish the red dome of the conflagration zone to our left and the landslide zone to our right. Far below us, almost unnoticed among the few peaks of the mountains that shadowed it, was the main plaza swarmed with Villains that Eraserhead already beat down.

' _As long as Kurogiri doesn't move from where he is, then he can't reach out to us._ ' I thought with pursed lips, noticing how steep were the cliffs in this zone. ' _That means that, for the moment, Shigaraki can't reach us. And it's also devoid of any Villains as far as I know. A good place to strategize._ '

Lastly, and with a bit of dread, I turned to my friends.

Most of them showed shock and concern, as I expected. A few had even begun to have mild panic attacks much to my concern, but so far seemed enough in control as to listen to those who attempted to calm them down — like Midoriya, for example.

Frowning, I made a quick head-count — Midoriya, Asui, Mineta, Tokoyami, Koda, Aoyama, Ojiro, Kaminari, Jiro, Shoto, Hagakure and Yaoyorozu were all there. In short, all of the students that were supposed to be separated and dispersed all over the USJ zones. Thanks to my quick action — and Sero and Uraraka's help of course — that part of the Villains' plan couldn't come into fruition, forcing them to improvise and possibly screw over a few more steps in their main scheme.

' _The question is, until how long can things go in our relative favor before Shigaraki brings in the main guns?_ '

I shook my head, and went over to kneel beside a slightly freaked-out Mineta, who was mumbling nonsense to himself. Cautiously, my hand rested on his shoulder — that caused him to jump slightly and turn towards me in a frenzy, relaxing only minutely when he noticed it was only me.

"Is everyone alright?" I asked aloud, my eyes gliding over my friends.

There were some minute flinches and a few wary glances, but eventually they managed to shake off their fear slightly faster than I expected.

"Yes, we're okay..." Yaoyorozu stood up and brushed her Hero costume, as nonchalantly as she could. "At least for a while."

"No, we're _not_ okay!" Mineta exploded, tears running down his face as he stood as tall as his short legs allowed him to. "What the hell's going on here!? Why are Villains attacking us!? And why are the teachers not doing a thing!?"

Everyone turned towards him between surprised at his outburst and a bit scared that his screams would attract unwanted attention. I pursed my lips, refraining myself from snapping at the young student for having a perfectly understandable reaction — I knew what to expect, and that was the only reason I wasn't freaking out like him right now.

It was Midoriya who tried to calm him down in his own way.

"C-c-calm down, Mineta-kun!" He drew the most shaky-but-hopeful smile I ever saw in anyone. "Aizawa-sensei, Aquila-san and Thirteen-sensei are all keeping the pressure off us — soon we'll be home safe and sound, you'll see!"

Tokoyami's expression darkened. "Will we, though? From what the man with the hands said, their main objective is bringing down All Might-sensei — we're probably collateral damage. If hurting us makes All Might-sensei come here faster, then I doubt this 'League of Villains' will have as much scruples."

"That, assuming they didn't plan to hurt us in the first place." Kaminari bit his lower lip, a terrified expression on his face as he lowered his gaze to avoid everyone's stares.

Midoriya's face hardened with determination, visibly forcing down his own fear. "T-then we'll have to resist until help arrives! W-we'll defeat as many Villains as we can and resist until All Might and the other teachers arrive to help us!"

"How can you be so sure that help will be arriving at all?" Mineta almost shrieked in despair. He seemed about to bolt at any moment, but Asui's tongue kept him in place. "There are maybe thousands of Villains out there that will come after us!"

"Because we're Class 1-A students, training under Aizawa-sensei and All Might himself!" Midoriya proclaimed firmly, making everyone's eyes go wide — mine included, I admit. "I-if we're together, then we can handle whatever these Villains throw at us! We just have to believe in ourselves and our Quirks!"

For a moment, I thought I was in the wrong anime — that sounded more like what Luffy or Naruto would say rather than Midoriya. Oh, I knew the timid green-haired kid could cheer up everyone with a few well-chosen words, it's something like a rule every anime needed to respect in order to be successful — but _that_ inspiring speech? It surprised me — and pleasantly so.

It seemed like it had the desired effect on the others too, seeing as Mineta no longer twitched in preparation to bolt away and the rest of my classmates looked minutely more confident about themselves and the whole situation.

"Well that's good and all..." Jiro suddenly commented with a deadpan tone, crossing her arms over her chest. "But how are we gonna hold on until they arrive? As impressive as they are, Aizawa-sensei, Thirteen-sensei and Aquila are only three Pro Heroes against maybe hundreds of Villains, including the smokey guy and the handsy one. Sooner or later they'll be in a bind, and the next ones in line are _us._ "

I smiled confidently — that was my cue to step in. "Which is why we are _not_ going to wait for them to take out our teachers."

"Eh?"

Almost everyone turned to me with the same bewildered look — only Shoto looked over to me with a slightly more interested look.

"You have a plan?" He asked, grasping his ice-covered hand with his opposite hand, as if preparing himself for battle.

"I have something in mind, yeah." I nodded. "It's not exactly foolproof, but considering who we are up against... I think we have a fair chance of winning."

Shoto didn't look exactly surprised that I had a strategy plan formed up against this situation — even if it _was_ the first time he'd ever witnessed something like this coming from me. I never showed anything that denoted I was good at strategy after all. It left me a bit more anxious, wondering if I was really choosing the right choice.

The others at first seemed to wonder the exact same things, judging how they exchanged dubious looks.

"Well, your strategy saved us from being sucked into that shady mist." Ojiro of all people stepped up with a small shaky grin on his face. He nodded at me when I turned to gawk a bit at him.

"I agree." Tokoyami shrugged, as expressionless as ever — or so he looked like anyways. "It wouldn't hurt to at least hear you out."

Slowly, everyone agreed, some aloud, others with silent nods. Soon, everyone's gazes turned to me, expectant.

And for a moment, I silently panicked. What if I screwed up and sent them all to their deaths? What if Shigaraki or Kurogiri managed to wipe them out before the teachers arrived? What if they managed to call Nomu and used him to destroy not only the teachers, but _us_ as well?

What if, what if, _what if_.

Then I swallowed all those doubts, with much more effort than I expected.

' _Hope for the best, plan for the worst._ '

I grinned, my normally-kind smile turning a bit predatory.

"Then here's what I have in mind."

* * *

 **FIVE MINUTES LATER**

As I flew high in the sky, keeping tabs of everyone, I pummeled down the anxious knot that struggled to throw my breakfast out my throat. The handy transmitters Yaoyorozu quickly prepared for each of us crackled from time to time, Kaminari's Quirk keeping it active just in case.

We discovered that communication within U.S.J was possible — it only restricted to outside the area. Which worked just fine for us — that way I could inform of any Villain attacks or any change we needed to make for the plan.

My lips tightened. Would my plan work out though?

* * *

" _The first thing that worries me is keeping Handsy-Man and Misty-Guy away from us. From what I couls see, Handsy-Man's Quirk is useless unless he touches the thing or person he wants to disintegrate." Hoseki pointed at his own face to emphasize his point. "So it's best if we have at least one person with intangible attacks. Jiro-san, Tokoyami-san, Aoyama-san, your duty is keeping Handsy-Man from touching anyone by blasting him away with your respective Quirks. It's a lot of pressure, I know," his expression turned pained, "but your Quirks are an advantage against him and it's only a precaution."_

 _The three mentioned exchanged wary looks, unsure. Even Aoyama, with his usual confidence, seemed a bit tense._

 _"Shoto," the winged boy turned to his cousin with a troubled look, "is there any possibility that I can convince you to use your flame side...?"_

 _Shoto's face instantly turned ice-cold, mismatched eyes boring into his cousin with the lethality of a dagger. "How do you—?_ "

 _"I'm not stupid, cousin."_

 _"... You of all people should know why I can't do it then."_

 _Hoseki's face turned conflicted, but ultimately nodded, albeit with evident reluctance in the gesture._

 _"Midoriya-san, I know your Quirk is mostly close-range attacks, but do you have any long-range hits that could help against Handsy-Man?"_

 _"E-eh? Uh, well, I have an idea that could work and that uh,_ maybe _won't incapacitate me from future fights. D-do you think I can keep him away with that?"_

 _The winged boy smiled. "I'm pretty sure you can."_

* * *

 **FORWARD GROUP**

" _Now,_ _we need to divide ourselves in groups that would serve as distraction as well as good combatants to take out the Villains fighting Aizawa-sensei. I don't have enough information to go by about their power, but it's best to assume that their strength relies on their number rather than their individual prowess._ "

Shoto glided down the mountainside, freezing everything in his path, silent and concentrated in his cousin's words. Behind him, Jiro struggled to keep the impromptu skateboard under control, Ojiro keeping a hand on her shoulder with an uncomfortable expression on his face.

" _In the first group, which we'll call Forward Group, we'll have to keep a balance between long-range, close-quarters and crowd-control attacks. Shoto's Quirk is ideal for crowd-control_ — _in case of superior numbers, he can deal with the majority of them. For the stragglers, Ojiro-san, you have pretty decent close-quarters fighting skills, which he'll probably need. Other than giving Eraserhead a transmitter, all you need to do is diminish the number of Villains to the best of your ability."_

At the time Shoto had to hold in a snort — everyone knew that his combat skills were good enough that he could care for the Villains on his own. He didn't need the others' help in case of close combat — though he agreed that keeping Jiro with him so that Handsy-Man didn't touch him was smart.

"Todoroki, are near the plaza yet?" Ojiro asked over the howling of the wind.

Shoto looked forward — just one more cliff to surpass and they'd be there.

"We're close." He anwered on his radio, making both Jiro and the karate-kid tense in preparation.

There was no need for the two of them to help him in the mismatch-eyed boy's opinion — he'd take care of all the Villains that Aizawa-sensei didn't take out on his own.

* * *

 **BAIT GROUP**

 _"For the next group, I find it vital a high mobility rather than combat prowess. So, Tokoyami-san, you'll be leading this Bait Group, with Yaoyorozu-san_ _and Mineta-san."_

 _"Me!?" Mineta jumped in fright._

 _"HIM!?" Many concurred, the loudest being the female part of the group._

 _"Mineta-san, I trust that your Quirk makes itself useful, for the group's sake." Hoseki smiled frigidly._

Even now, Mineta couldn't suppress a shiver as he remembered that frigid smirk. Yaoyorozu, equipped with what seemed like a hiking equipment, felt it and sent a blank stare from the corner of her eye.

"Growing antsy already?" She asked in a low tone.

He gulped. Of course he was afraid of the Villains! There could be really powerful guys out there for crying out loud! But... it also scared him what Hoseki would do to him if he let out his most... perverted desires...

" _W_ _hat you need to do requires high mobility_ — _that's why I chose you three. Your mission is attract the Villains scattered in as many zones as you can, and direct them over to Shoto and his group, that would be fighting at the main plaza with Eraserhead. I_ don't _want you engaging in direct combat_ — _just in and out and nothing more. If someone gets too close, I know you can handle it, but don't let them swarm you and corner you, alright?"_

"Don't let them corner you... Yeah, right, that's easy for him to say." Mineta grumbled, hiding behind some bushes as they overlooked a bunch of rowdy Villains discussing among them in loud tones.

Yaoyorozu rolled her eyes, but didn't make any comment to refute or agree. Tokoyami's ruby-red eyes flew from person to person, making a quick headcount. His expression hardened — not counting the ones he obviously couldn't see, he counted about thirty Villains.

"Get ready." He ordered with a low tone, Mineta letting out a small whimper.

Yaoyorozu readied her quarterstaff, her own mind drifting to what Hoseki planned...

 _"If it's mobility you're looking for, why didn't you pick Tsu-chan instead of me?" The Vice-President raised a hand, expertly hiding her self-doubts under a mask of cold professionalism.  
_

 _But his disarming smile surprised her, as if he knew exactly what she was implying with that simple question._

 _"Well, because as much as that's true, one of the zones I saw the Villains settled is the conflagration zone_ — _and that's an off-limits zone for her, am I right?"_

 _Asui nodded curtly. "I prefer to stay away from burning zones, yeah."_

 _"Besides, Yaoyorozu-san, you underestimate yourself." His smirk turned a bit softer, kinder. "I know your Quirk allows you to have a lot of high mobility, if you allow it to. All you need... is a bit of creativity."_

Creativity when they were fighting for their lives? Surely Hoseki had a few screws loose in his head.

Although it wouldn't hurt to try it out sometime...

"Now!"

At Tokoyami's command, Mineta and Yaoyorozu jumped into the fray, the small boy screaming something incoherent as he threw those balls that grew in his head. Most failed to hit, but the ones that got a Villain stuck them to the ground, making Tokoyami and her jobs easier to pummel them down.

She twirled her quarterstaff and cracked it in one of the Villains' skull, who dropped like a light. Sensing someone behind her, she jammed forcefully the butt of her weapon into his stomach — the Villain huffed and coughed as he dropped to his hands and knees, swiftly being put out of commission by a chop to the back of his head. Tokoyami took out as many as possible with his own Quirk, the black bird screeching as it swallowed Villains whole left and right.

" _ **I think that's enough guys!**_ " She then heard Hoseki's voice coming from her radio. " _ **There are about two dozen Villains coming over your direction — get out of there as soon as possible!**_ "

"Roger." Tokoyami answered for her group, turning to Yaoyorozu and Mineta and giving a curt nod. She answered in kind, grabbing Mineta by the back of his costume and — inwardly thanking his light weight — dragged him with her to follow the dark avian boy towards the plaza. Behind, hollers and profanities from the reuniting Villains broke the momentary peace, not wasting time in following.

Out of the corner of her eye, she managed to distinguish behind the Villains the Infiltration Group running along the landslide zone — or two-thirds of the group really, that she could really _see_ with her eyes.

* * *

 **INFILTRATION GROUP**

"They're running!" Hagakure hissed to her companions, dragging them by their wrists. "C'mon!"

" _When the Bait Group attracts the Villains' attention enough, it will be the Infiltration Group's turn to take action. Aoyama-san, Koda-san and Hagakure-san, your goal is get over to the Entranceway and give radios to everyone, keeping them informed of the situation."_

 _"Uhm..." Hagakure raised a hand... or a glove, as it were. "I get why I'm the Infiltration Group, but why are Aoyama and Koda with me too?"_

 _Hoseki smiled. "Because with his silent demeanor, Koda-san is pretty easy to overlook. And despite being much more... boisterous, Aoyama-san's Quirk will be useful to keep away Handsy-Man. Besides, he can be your fighter if you ever face a Villain."_

 _Koda just fiddled with his fingers nervously, whereas Aoyama puffed out his chest proudly._

 _"You can merely put Aoyama between yourself and a Villain and he'd blind anyone with his sparkle." Kaminari commented with a snicker, low chuckles running among the group, helping relax the tense students._

So far however, it seemed there wouldn't be a need for fighting. Hagakure breathed in relief as she and her companions ran along the uneven grounds of the landslide zone, trying to make as little noise as possible to avoid attracting the still-retreating Villains' attention. Stone and rubble rolled down the landslide at their feet, but fortunately no one bothered to look behind them — not with Todoroki, Yaoyorozu and Mineta running away from them.

Mineta screaming obscenities to rile on the Villains served as well.

Still, with the uneven ground and their fear of being discovered, the Infiltration Group wasted precious time to cross the landslide zone until they reached the city ruins zone's limit. They slowed down, stopping a bit to recover their breath.

"This could be tricky..." Hagakure mumbled — unlike her companions, she didn't bother hiding behind a boulder. "I can go on ahead and scout which building is empty and which has Villains."

"That's a splendid idea!" Aoyama grandilocuently exclaimed, while Koda merely nodded in nerviosism. Hagakure noticed it and knelt beside him, resting a gloved hand on his forearm.

"Don't worry big guy." Her smile, although invisible, was pretty obvious in her chirpy voice. "We'll be okay. You'll see!"

Koda looked unsure for a long second, before he tried to form a shaky grin and nod at his companion. He still looked frightened, but at least managed to gather enough courage to stop trembling.

"Hoseki, we're at the city ruins zone. I'll be scouting ahead and we'll hide in the buildings until the Bait Group arrive. That okay?" Hagakure used her headpiece to inform her plans.

" _ **Perfect. Just be careful**_ — _ **from up here I can't see how many Villains there are.**_ "

"Okie-dokie!" She dropped the communication and jumped to her feet. "Well, wish me luck guys!"

And with that she dashed away into the city ruins. Koda looked on in evident worry, grasping at his hands, but Aoyama just kept on keeping watch with that eternal smile on his face...

* * *

 **BACKUP GROUP**

 _With a sigh, Hoseki turned towards the remaining students. Midoriya had a strange expression on his face, mixture of anticipation and a bit of mild panic, but so far seemed to be in control of his feelings. Asui seemed flippant as ever, but judging how her wide eyes were fixed on the winged boy, he could see her hyping herself up to keep her own fear in check. Kaminari was uncharacteristically serious, sparks flying around him occasionally, eyes fixed on the Co-Vice-President of their class._

 _"Lastly, for the last group... We'll be doing the most difficult of jobs."_

 _That didn't sit well for them, judging how they tensed even further._

 _"We four will be the Backup Group. We'll be scouring U.S.J from above and keeping tabs on everyone, to make sure everything goes well." Hoseki's expression turned sour. "That means we'll be the absolute last in entering a fight. We'll come down only when a group has fallen."_

 _Whereas most looked at their classmate with confusion, Midoriya, Yaoyorozu and Todoroki tensed._

 _"You mean that when the three members of a group are down_ —"

 _"It could be for a million reasons." Hoseki quickly cut in the black-haired girl. "But we four need to be in the air for as long as possible. Kaminari-san," he turned to the blond boy, who stopped sending sparks as he was called, "can you fight while keeping the connection of transmitters up?"_

 _His face scrunched up before softening. "The Villains are jamming all connection between us and the outside, but nothing's interfering with signals inside U.S.J. I think that I can keep it up, as long as the Villain jamming the signals doesn't detect me."_

 _Hoseki nodded in satisfaction. "That's perfect. Yaoyorozu-san, could you make some communication devices, enough for us, the rest of the class, our teachers and Aquila-sensei?"_

 _"Easily." She nodded, putting herself to work immediately. "I only need a bit more time."_

 _"We're a bit pressed on time, but do what you can." Hoseki turned to his group. "Kaminari-san, obviously I'd like you to keep communication between our radios up. In case of combat, I'll leave you somewhere safe, with Asui-san as possible support."_

 _"Please call me Tsu-chan. Ribbit." The girl said with her usual deadpan voice._

 _Hoseki doubted, before giving a soft smile. "Thank you for the confidence, but I prefer calling you Asui-san for a while longer. If that's okay."_

 _Asui pursed her lips tighter, but nodded stiffly._

 _Finally Hoseki turned to Midoriya with a hard, steely glint in his grey eyes. The shine in them made the green-haired boy startle and stand a bit straighter, a bit intimidated by it._

 _"Midoriya-san, are you confident you can work out that tech ique you were talking about before? The long-range attack?"_

 _He gulped. "Y-yeah, I'm pretty sure."_

 _Hoseki's face softened. "Then you'll be our trump card."_

Remembering the last words Hoseki said about him, Midoriya swallowed heavily. He hadn't lied about that technique — he did have a pretty good idea of what it would be. However, the subtle pressure of being the 'trump card' as Hoseki put it, just made him wonder if the attack would work as well as Hoseki hoped.

Above him, said winged boy flapped his wings seemingly lazily in the air, suspending both of them hundreds of feet above the ground, sharp eyes not losing sight of what was happening in the zones below. Their radios crackled from time to time, orders coming and going, keeping tabs of everyone. Midoriya hoped everyone would be safe enough without their help.

"U-um, Hoseki-san?" The green-haired teen called out to his friend.

Having a bit of reprieve from having to give any orders or updates, Hoseki still kept his guard up as he hummed in acknowledgment.

"Why did you say I was the trump card?"

Stopping his scan on the zones, Hoseki looked down at him with... was that surprise?

"Well, I actually agree with Asui-san about your Quirk, Midoriya-san."

Midoriya startled, panicked. "W-w-w-what do you mean!?"

"When she said that your Quirk and All Might-san's looked fairly similar, I agreed with her. However, yours looked unpolished, inexperienced." Midoriya stopped fidgeting, wide-eyed. "That means there are means of improvement and innovation. Whereas All Might-san can do certain things, you can do others. And that can play in our favor."

The winged-boy smiled and then continued keeping tabs on everyone while still talking. "The day of the Quirk Assessment, you managed to only hurt your index finger when you threw that softball. I'm pretty sure you can do something similar here. You just need to think it over — and everyone knows you're pretty good at that."

Midoriya's eyes widened. Could Hoseki be implying that he knew something about him and One for All? Or was it just his paranoia speaking?

Just then—

 _ **BOOM!**_

Startled, both Hoseki and Midoriya jumped mid-air and whirled their heads around just as an obnoxiously-loud boom that rattled the air and destabilized them both.

Hoseki's breath caught audibly in his throat.

Midoriya froze wide-eyed.

 _It came from the main plaza._

* * *

 **A/N: Phew! Another short chapter but now we're getting somewhere. In the upcoming chapters there will be divisions between the groups Hoseki organized. Sorry in advance for the confusion.**

 **However, I am quite satisfied with the plans I made! There are a lot of croquis of how I wanted my groups to be divided in, and I'm happy with the results. Though I think I'll have to change my summary and put "completely AU" instead of just "sorta AU" LOL.**

 **And to those reviewers that said a tactician suited Hoseki better? There you have it folks.**

 **-Tejerina: And what awaits isn't any better! Oh, later on we'll see what Aquila will have to face. For now, it's battles all the way! But I'm glad I managed to surprise you with that twist.**

 **-justrose: Thank you so much! Yes, even the most canon-divergent fics usually stay the same in regards of the USJ attack. For a while I was tempted to do the same but some ideas began popping in my head. So I put them together the best I could and, well... We're seeing just the beginning of those ideas. Oh, no Hoseki fight just yet, but we'll see, we'll see.**

 **-Guest: I'm so sorry! Here's the continuation! Though this cliffhanger isn't really any better than the last.**

 **-Lazymanjones96: I'm glad you liked it! Hope to continue hearing from you!**

 **-kylC: I know, I think I surprised everyone with that quick update. I wanted to get it off my chest ASAP I guess. This one was more difficult to take out but because I didn't quite know what I wanted to do. Hopefully everyone's satisfied with the results. And don't worry, our dear Aquila is safe and sound! For the moment...**

 **-Guest (2): Yeeeaaah, I put Aquila-sensei in a bit of a bind, huh. Hopefully now you don't hate me as much LOL.**

 **-chibi-no-baka: I'm glad you liked it! Yeah, at first I didn't know just what to do regarding the plot, but then I said 'Eh, f**k it' and just threw in whatever my mind created. Oh, I took your radio idea into consideration if you didn't notice in the chapter. As you can see, they managed to get away from Shigaraki fairly quickly (maybe _too_ quickly? I dunno). As you said, staying there wouldn't have been useful for anyone, so I made them flee from the scene. And I think diamond can't decay by natural means, but considering it's a Quirk... I think in this case it can.**

 **-Boopadoop: BOOP~! Man am I glad to see you! Your reviews are always welcome! Oh, I hope I do the show justice with this fic! And about your questions... A-hem!**

 **1) Hoseki's wings: That's correct, birds' bones are far lighter. But this is a human's, which are significantly heavier. I didn't want Hoseki to grow as thin as a twig to be able to fly, so I made him grow muscles — mostly in his wings, but also in the rest of his body. This idea, I admit I copied from a book I read a long time ago of humans that created wing-like contraptions that allowed them to fly, but they needed to be in top-physical form to be able to do so. If they failed, then they'd fall to their deaths. A bit of what Leonardo Da Vinci managed to create, but human-sized. And yes, theoretically he could've begun flying at age 9, but considering how young he was, I doubt his mother would've allowed him to try flying so young. Mostly out of concern. Oh he was extremely curious, but he's also patient —** **he knew the reward would be double as big if he waited until Aquila told him when he'd be able to fly.**

 **2) Diamond Quirk: If I have to be completely honest, not even Hoseki knows the whole extension of what it does, considering he barely practices with it. But for you, I'll explain: it's a Diamond Cover, meaning this whole body can turn into hard diamond at relative will. Which means, it weighs him down enough that he can't fly freely with it activated as you said. He'll be training in the future to overcome that inconvenience, but for now that's all he can do.**

 **3) Honestly it's more about personal preference: I like Koda better than Sato to be honest. Koda's more useless in a battle unless surrounded by beasts, but he's so adorable I couldn't send him away.**

 **4) Oops LOL. I wanted to say 'all that jazz' xD But oh well.**

 **Thank you so much for pointing out your concerns! I hope I managed to answer them.**

 **P.S: Oh I didn't think of that LOL. I figured out his future Pro Hero name but not his Quirk name lol. I'll brainstorm about it.**

 **-MashmallowRabbit: I'm glad you liked it! I wanted to emphasize how Enzeru's like the two sides of a coin, the mature side he shows when facing a threat and the young side he tries to show his friends. Obviously he's failing at the second one, but he doesn't know yet. You'll see more snippets of Enzeru's past as the story goes on, don't worry! I hope you liked this chapter as well!**

 **-gekkycutecupcake: I'm glad you liked them both! Here's the update!**

 **-Nightwing15: Wow that's enthusiasm haha! Here's the next chapter, hope you liked it!**

 **-hardcake: Wish granted!**

 **Well, see you guys next chapter!**


	15. AUTHOR'S NOTE

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**

 **So... Hey there.**

 **I just... Ugh, I don't know even where to begin.**

 **Look. I have personal problems in my life that I'm struggling to overcome. I've been fighting for a year and a half to keep my job, one that while it didn't make me rich it gave me a respectable monthly upkeep. It let me pay my taxes, Internet and all that shit.**

 **Now my personal problems have worsened, and I got fired just last week. I know what you're thinking, 'Hey, how come you posted in your bio that you were unemployed?' Easy. At that moment I was in a very precarious situation in my job and I had multiple warnings that I'd get fired. So this didn't come as a surprise... much anyways. So I prepared myself and put 'Unemployed' rather than 'Employed'. Yeah, way to boost my optimism.**

 **In short... I can't keep updating the story until I solve my problems, and find a job, AND leave my parents' house for good.**

 **That means a hiatus. One that I'm not sure I'll be able to return from.**

 **Look y'all, I won't lie. I haven't been able to enjoy writing as before. I still have a bazillion ideas for what I want to do in the My Hero Academia fic, and not so much in the One Piece fic. But lately I haven't been able to just sit on my ass and write them down as before. I just... don't have the motivation.**

 **This is hard. It feels like I'm saying goodbye.**

 **I won't post this as complete. I will do my utmost to return, I promise. But until then, please be patient.**

 **Love,**

 **Laradhel**


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